Australian Breakdancer’s Family Blasts Olympic Judges for Not Recognizing Her ‘Courage and Dignity’

The father-in-law of viral Australian Olympic breakdancing sensation Racehl Gunn, aka “Raygun,” is blasting judges for giving her a zero score at the Paris Games.

Andrew Free took to Facebook to air his grievances at Olympic judges who, in his view, did not consider his daughter-in-law’s “originality and musicality.”

“It was a pretty stacked competition and the judges were clearly looking for a certain style of breaking which is not Rachael’s,” Andrew Free, Gunn’s father-in-law, wrote. “Although they are supposed to mark five different aspects with each having the same weighting, in my obviously biased opinion, they did not reward originality and musicality, so she was up against it.

“The main thing is she represented Australia and breaking at the Olympics with courage and dignity. It comes naturally for some of them, not so much for Rachael. It is part of the culture.”

Similarly, Gunn told ESPN that the “power moves” performed by the other dancers were not her forte. As she describes herself, she brings something different to the competition.

“I was never going to beat these girls on what they do best: their power moves,” Gunn explained. “What I bring is creativity.”

She added, “Creativity is really important to me. I go out there, and I show my artistry. Sometimes it speaks to the judges, and sometimes it doesn’t. I do my thing, and it represents art. That is what it is about.”

Whatever Gunn was trying to put out there, the judges weren’t feeling it. Neither, as it turns out, are over 10,000 signatories to an online petition calling for an investigation of Gunn and the selection process for Australia’s breaking team, which they claim Gunn “manipulated” at the expense of better-qualified dancers.

“Rachel Gunn, who set up her own governing body for breakdancing, has manipulated the selection process to her own advantage,” the petition reads. Despite the clear talent and qualification of other outstanding female breakdancers like G Clef and Holy Molly, they were unfairly overlooked. The NT Youlong Boys, a group of incredibly talented and underprivileged youth from the Northern Territory, were denied crucial funding by Dr. Gunn to attend the qualifiers—a decision that directly impacted their chance to showcase their skills on a national stage.”

As of this writing, the petition has 12,107 signatures out of a goal of 15,000.