Australian breaker Rachael “Raygun” Gunn, who rose to viral fame for her bewildering efficiency on the Paris Olympics, plans to retire from competitors, she informed a Sydney radio station Wednesday.
The 37-year-old grew to become the topic of widespread ridicule after her unorthodox Olympic routine, which included a transfer during which she mimicked a kangaroo hopping that led to a wave of web memes and clips. She didn’t win any of her three round-robin battles on the 2024 Video games, the place breaking made its Olympic debut.
Gunn mentioned she initially deliberate to maintain competing however modified her thoughts after what she mentioned was “upsetting” backlash.
“I nonetheless break, however I don’t compete,” she mentioned on the 2DayFM’s “The Jimmy & Nath Present.” “I’m not going to compete anymore, no. … I used to be going to maintain competing, for positive, however that appears actually tough for me to do now to strategy a battle.”
She added that she nonetheless dances and breaks, “however that’s like in my front room with my companion.”
Raygun performs on the Olympics in Paris. (Ezra Shaw / Getty Photos)
Gunn has beforehand spoken about her expertise and defended how she certified for the Olympics. Theories over her qualification circulated on-line within the wake of her efficiency, together with a Change.org petition alleging she manipulated the method. The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) requested the petition’s elimination and AOC chief government Matt Carroll defended Gunn, calling the petition “disgraceful” and saying it unfold misinformation.
Gunn gained the QMS Oceania Championships in Sydney, an computerized Olympic qualifying competitors with 15 breakers. She beforehand mentioned she knew “the chances have been in opposition to” her when competing within the Olympics.
“The conspiracy theories have been completely wild,” Gunn mentioned. “And it was actually upsetting as a result of I felt like I didn’t have any management over how individuals noticed me or who I used to be, who my companion was, my story. And so it was actually upsetting for plenty of completely different causes.”
Breaking isn’t slated to look on the Olympic program within the 2028 Video games in Los Angeles or the 2032 Video games in Brisbane, Australia. When it comes to what’s subsequent for Gunn, it seems her Paris routine can be her final official dance. She holds a place as a college lecturer at Macquarie College in Sydney, and mentioned she’s engaged on “some tasks occurring behind the scenes.”
“It’s all form of of the identical form of vibe of making an attempt to convey extra positivity, making an attempt to encourage individuals to bounce, to have enjoyable and to be inventive and to be themselves, to be their genuine selves, no matter which may appear to be,” she mentioned.
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(Photograph: Elsa / Getty Photos)
