British singing superstar Adele paused mid-performance during a concert in Munich at the weekend to praise Australian breakdancer Raygun for her effort, saying it was her “favourite” Olympic moment.
Australian breakdancer Rachael Gunn, who goes by Raygun, went viral after receiving a score of zero for her routine in the inaugural women’s breaking competition in Paris.
The 36-year-old university lecturer has been the subject of searing criticism and cruel jokes ever since, leading Adele to bring her show in Germany to a halt to express her support.
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During her third Munich concert on Saturday (local time), the Hello singer as the audience if they had watched the performance, revealing it had been a major topic of conversation among her and her friends.
“I can’t work out if it was a joke, but either way, it has made me very, very happy. We have been laughing non-stop for nearly 24 hours,” she told the crowd.
She urged the audience to look up Raygun’s performance, calling it “so funny” and her “favourite thing that has happened in the Olympics this whole time”.
In response to the online backlash, Raygun has maintained a low profile but addressed the situation on social media.
She explained her approach: “I wanted to do something new and creative because how many chances do you get to do that on an international stage?
“I was always the underdog and aimed to make my mark in a different way.”
Despite the negative feedback, some have defended Raygun. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese commended her effort, stating, “Raygun had a crack, good on her. She’s represented our country and that’s a good thing.”
She lost all three of her round-robin battles by a combined score of 54-0, and surprised audiences with her “kangaroo dance” as a nod to Australia.
Amid the backlash, the head judge of the breaking competition said Gunn was just trying to be original.
And the breaking federation said it had offered mental health support in the wake of online criticism.
“Breaking is all about originality and bringing something new to the table and representing your country or region,” head judge Martin Gilian — known as MGbility — said at a press conference.
“This is exactly what Raygun was doing. She got inspired by her surroundings, which in this case, for example, was a kangaroo.”
The breaking and hip-hop communities “definitely stand behind her,” he added.
“We have five criteria in the competitive judging system and just her level was maybe not as high as the other competitors,” MGbility said.
“But again, that doesn’t mean that she did really bad. She did her best. She won the Oceania qualifier. Unfortunately for her, the other b-girls were better.”
Breaking, known to many as break dancing, a term its performers dislike, is not on the program for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. The next Summer Games after that will be in Brisbane, Australia.
“We believe that this has nothing to do with our chances for Brisbane 2032,” Nifontov said when asked about the criticism of Raygun and getting back into the Olympics.
– With AP
