Rachael Louise Gunn
Rachael Louise Gunn (born 2 September 1987), known competitively as Raygun, is an Australian academic and competitive breakdancer.
She is a lecturer in the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Language and Literature at Macquarie University Faculty of Arts. Her research focuses on breaking, street dance, hip-hop, youth culture, and gender in politics. She is a member of the Macquarie University Performance and Expertise Research Centre.
Gunn gained international notoreity after competing in breaking at the 2024 Summer Olympics, the sport's debut at the Games. She received a score of zero in battles against three opponents and did not progress past the first round. After her performance, Gunn became the subject of widespread criticism and online mockery. An anonymously-filed petition on the website Change.org calling for an investigation into Gunn's position on the Australian Olympic Team was removed after being reported by the Australian Olympic Committee for containing misinformation and defamatory content.
In the breaking event at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Gunn did not receive any points from the judges in each of her three round-robin battles against her opponents, losing 18–0 in all three rounds. She was eliminated at the round-robin stage after being beaten by Logistx (US), Syssy (France), and Nicka (Lithuania). As her performance and outfit did not match her competitors' street style, Gunn was subject to widespread criticism online. In response, Gunn shared a quote on Instagram: "don't be afraid to be different, go out there and represent yourself, you never know where that's gonna take you". She said she could not compete athletically with her younger rivals, and said she instead wanted to "move differently, be artistic and creative. ... I was always the underdog and wanted to make my mark in a different way".
Team Australia's Chef de Mission, Anna Meares, later issued a statement supporting Gunn and condemning what she called "trolls and keyboard warriors". Martin Gilian, the Head Olympic breaking judge, said that Raygun had done exactly what breaking is supposed to be about: "originality and bringing something new to the table and representing your country or region", which he said she achieved with her kangaroo hop. He added that the breaking community stood behind her. The World DanceSport Federation also offered the support of their safeguarding officer in case Gunn was experiencing mental health problems due to the media attention.
In the aftermath of the event, false rumours spread that Gunn's husband, Free, was a national coach involved in the Australian team selection and a judge in the Oceania Breaking Championships through which Gunn qualified. However, the Oceania qualifier did not have Free nor any other Australians on its judging panel, used the same rules as the Paris games, and was open to everyone.
An anonymous petition on Change.org, calling for an investigation into the conduct of Gunn, Anna Meares, and the selection process, garnered thousands of signatures. This petition aimed to hold Gunn accountable for "unethical conduct" at the games, also accusing Raygun of "manipulating the selection process" while calling for a public apology from both Gunn and Meares. The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) chief executive Matt Carroll demanded the petition be withdrawn, saying it amounted to "bullying and harassment and is defamatory" and that the AOC was especially offended by the insult to Meares. It stated that the Australian selection was made by 9 independent international judges, and that Gunn was nominated legitimately by DanceSport Australia to the AOC for selection. Gunn is not any kind of officeholder with AUSBreaking nor DanceSport, and no athlete appealed against her selection. The petition was withdrawn by Change.org on 15 August 2024.
On the same day, Gunn posted a video on social media talking of the effect that the trolling expressed on social media had had on her and her family, and asked media to stop harassing her family, friends, and the Australian and broader breaking community. She said she had taken her entry seriously and worked hard to prepare.
In September 2024 it was reported that Gunn had been elevated to world number one in the World DanceSport Federation’s rankings.[1][2]
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