Governing body rank RAYGUN the infamous dancer with PhD in Breakdancing as No. 1 breaker in the world despite her debacle at Paris Olympics



Wednesday, September 11, 2024 - Australia's Rachael Gunn, known as B-Girl Raygun, who went viral after her performance at the Paris Olympics Games, is now ranked the No. 1 breaker in the world.

The 37-year-old who has a PHD in Breakdancing, claimed the top spot in the latest women’s rankings released by the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) – the governing body of breaking and other dancesports despite the fact that her dance failed to score any points across her Olympic battles against breakers from the United States, France and Lithuania in August, losing 18-0 in all three rounds.

Her performance also has made a subject of immense ridicule and memes on social media leading the dancer to take a break from social media.

However, in a new twist, the break dancing governing body, has named her the number one in the world as she won the gold medal at the 2023 WDSF Oceania Championships, securing her 1,000 ranking points and vaulting her up to No. 1 level on points with world No. 2 B-Girl Riko of Japan ahead of the breakers who defeated her in Paris. Her victory at the Oceania Championships also secured her a spot in Paris.

In a statement, the WDSF on Tuesday clarified that its rankings are updated based on each athlete’s top four performances within the past 12 months. Points earned in these competitions remain valid for 52 weeks from the date of the event.

The governing body also confirmed that the Olympic qualifying events in Shanghai and Budapest, as well as the Paris Games themselves, did not contribute to the ranking list due to limited athlete quotas. Additionally, WDSF said that events which traditionally give ranking points were not held to allow competitors to fully focus on preparation for the Games.

“In alignment with the Olympic Qualification System, ranking events were intentionally not held between 31 December 2023 and the Olympic Games Paris 2024. This strategic scheduling allowed athletes to focus solely on the last part of their Olympic qualification without the added pressure of additional ranking events.

“By the end of the Olympic Games, many of the competition results included in the ranking had expired, leading to the current situation where many athletes have only one competition result contributing to their ranking.”

It added that the current rankings should be looked at “in conjunction” with more recent results and that the list will change when the next batch of 12-month points expire and the Breaking for Gold World Series is held in Shanghai in October.

Raygun shot to fame after her unique routine at the Olympics drew the world’s attention.

Dressed in the green and gold tracksuit of Australia, she displayed some unorthodox moves, including a kangaroo hop, a backward roll and various contortions with her body while lying or crawling on the floor.

Raygun last week apologized to the breaking community, saying that she was “very sorry for the backlash that the community has experienced” after her performance.

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