Despite the varied opinions surrounding Australian breakdancer Rachael “Raygun” Gunn’s Olympic debut, her father-in-law and husband have enthusiastically and unwaveringly supported her. The 36-year-old, who was competing in the inaugural Olympic women’s breakdancing competition, caused quite a sensation when her performance featured some unusual techniques and kangaroo-like hopping steps. “I wanted to use my creativity and strength to come out here and do something new and different,” she remarked after the event. After Australian breakdancer Rachael “Raygun” Gunn failed to score a single point at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, her family vehemently backed her.
Despite her best efforts, she was unable to collect any points against rivals from the USA, France, or Lithuania due to her three round-robin losses with scores of 18-0, 18-0, and 18-0.
Talk show host Jimmy Fallon even made a lighthearted tribute to the breakdancer on his show after her performance was widely mocked online.
Andrew Free, her father-in-law, fiercely defended her performance, claiming that the judges did not appreciate her flair and uniqueness.
In addition to being the subject of internet jokes, singer Adele even made reference to the 36-year-old breakdancer live. On his show, Jimmy Fallon also gave her a playful homage.
“It was a pretty stacked competition and the judges were obviously looking for a certain style of breaking which is not Rachael’s,” he wrote in a social media post.
“She faced challenges because, in my blatantly biased view, they failed to reward musicality and originality, despite the fact that they are meant to mark five distinct aspects with equal weighting.”
“What matters most is that she bravely and dignifiedly represented Australia and broke at the Olympics,” he continued.
Raygun grew up dancing tap, jazz, and ballroom. When she was a student, she was introduced to breakdancing by Samuel Free, her coach and now husband.
Raygun had to put in a lot of effort to qualify for the Olympics; the year before, she had to win the Oceania Breaking Championships.
She had grown up doing tap, jazz, and ballroom dancing before being exposed to breakdancing at university by her now-husband and coach, Samuel Free.
The couple, who met in 2008, married in 2018 and have dedicated their lives to her record-breaking career.
When not performing on stage, the Australian champion uses her passion for dancing to further her scholastic objectives.
She has a Ph.D. in Cultural Studies and works as a researcher and instructor at Macquarie University in Sydney. According to her academic biography, she wants to research the “cultural politics of breaking.”
The Ph.D. holder teaches and conducts research at Sydney’s Macquarie University.
Her now-husband and coach, Samuel Free, introduced her to breakdancing at university after she had grown up performing jazz, ballroom, and tap. After getting married in 2018, the pair, who first met in 2008, have committed their entire lives to her record-breaking profession. The Australian champion uses her love of dancing to pursue academic goals when she’s not showing off her abilities on stage. She is a researcher and lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, where she holds a Ph.D. in Cultural Studies. Her university biography states that she is interested in the “cultural politics of breaking” as her area of study. The Ph.D. holder is also a researcher and lecturer at the Macquarie University in Sydney Her level may not have been as high as the other competitors, according to the five criteria in the competitive judging system,” MGbility went on. However, that does not imply that she performed poorly. She tried her hardest. She was the Oceania qualifying winner, but the other B-girls were, regrettably, superior than her.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also defended her and said, “(It’s an) Australian tradition of people having a go. She’s had a go representing our country and that’s a good thing.”