Australian break dancer Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn has – incredibly – been ranked No 1 according to the official World Dance Sport Federation (WDSF) world rankings for professional breakers for September.
Raygun finished last in Paris
According to the Stuff website, ‘Raygun’ returned to Australia last week to the unexpected ranking, despite her last place finish at the recent Paris 2024 Olympics.
Olympic gold medallist Ami ‘Ami’ Yuasa was missing from the rankings, as well as Dominika ‘Nicka’ Banevic and Liu ‘671’ Qingyi after they won silver and bronze, respectively.
Other Olympic competitors were ranked below Raygun, who finished 16th in Paris ahead of only a disqualified competitor.
The Olympic breaking event didn’t offer points for the world rankings, which are calculated from eligible events.
‘Raygun’ will be competing for the first time since the Paris Olympics next month in the BFG World Series taking place in Shanghai.
Best woman break dancer in Australia
‘Raygun’ has apologised for the backlash that her widely ridiculed Paris 2024 Olympics performance brought to the broader breakdancing community.
Gunn, whose routine featured a move that mimicked a kangaroo hopping, made the comments in an interview with Australia’s Channel 10.
In a snippet of the exchange, Gunn was asked if she was the best woman breakdancer in Australia.
“I think my record speaks to that,” the 37-year-old Sydney university lecturer said.
Gunn lost all three of her match-ups against rival dancers and her performance was parodied worldwide, including by late-night US television host Jimmy Fallon.
Commentators have questioned how she qualified for the Games, with some of her more fierce critics back home calling her a national embarrassment.
An online petition – which has since been removed – even demanded she issue a public apology.
