MELBOURNE – Australian breaker Rachael “Raygun” Gunn announced she will no longer compete following backlash from her performance at the Paris Olympics.
Gunn, who gained sudden fame as a 37-year-old university lecturer, lost all three of her round-robin battles by a combined score of 54-0 during breaking’s Olympic debut at Place de la Concorde.
Her performance drew widespread ridicule online and in mainstream media, targeting everything from her dance moves to her official green team kit.
Gunn told 2DayFM she still practices breaking but has decided to step away from competitions.
“I’m not going to compete any more, no,” Gunn said. “I was going to keep competing, for sure, but that seems really difficult for me to do now to approach a battle.”
Gunn shared that she continues to dance privately at home with her partner.
“It’s been really upsetting. I just didn’t have any control over how people saw me or who I was,” she said.
Breaking will not be part of the Olympic program for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
Gunn confirmed she would not consider returning to competition if the sport were reinstated in future Olympics.
An online petition that accused Gunn of manipulating the qualification process garnered 50,000 signatures before being removed at the request of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC).
The AOC denied claims that Gunn’s husband and coach, Samuel Free, influenced her selection for the Olympic team.
Gunn called the accusations “totally wild” and said she focuses on the positive feedback she has received.
“But I just try and stay on the positives and that’s what gets me through,” she said. “The people that have like (said), ‘you have inspired me to go out there and do something that I’ve been too shy to do. You’ve brought joy, you’ve brought laughter. You know, we’re so proud of you.’”
