Source: John Walton – PA Images / Getty
A petition calling for action against alleged misconduct by Paris Olympics breaker Raygun went viral with over 58,000 signatures.
Rachael “Raygun” Gunn has broken her silence, taking to Instagram in a video to address the swirling storm after her Olympic performance. https://t.co/AtLWVcLKwd pic.twitter.com/wGsbYyWzk9
— New York Post (@nypost) August 15, 2024
The Paris Olympic Games have ended, but the controversy over Australian B-girl Raygun and her performance – which included a move some called a “kangaroo hop” – is ongoing. It led to an online petition that was created accusing her of “unethical conduct,” which has garnered thousands of signatures. The petition, which was created on Tuesday (Aug. 13) by an individual identifying themselves as “Someone Who hates corruption,” was on Change.org and at last report had over 58,000 signatures.
“We, the undersigned, call for immediate accountability and transparency in the recent actions of Rachel Gunn and Anna Mears in the selection process for Australia’s female breakdancer representative at the upcoming Olympics,” the petition begins. “Rachel Gunn, who set up her own governing body for breakdancing, has manipulated the selection process to her own advantage. 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.” The theory sprang up online after Raygun aka Rachel Gunn earned an astonishing score of zero through her three preliminary rounds of competition, which became viral across social media leading to a bevy of memes making fun of her.
Oh dear. I can’t imagine why they had to turn off the comments to this video of “breaking with Raygun” cheering her on to Olympic victory the morning of her competition pic.twitter.com/PluGr7MZ1H
— sara (@minnesara) August 10, 2024
The Sydney Morning Herald began their investigation into Gunn, a lecturer at the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Language and Literature at Macquarie University in Sydney. They found that the claim behind the online petition wasn’t true and that Gunn advanced due to coming in first in one of three regional competitions. The Change.org petition has since been taken down after requests from the Australian Olympic Committee on Thursday (Aug. 15). AOC spokesman said in a statement that Gunn was “selected through a transparent and independent qualification event and nomination process.”
Gunn, however, is still dealing with the international response to her Olympic showing calling it “pretty devastating” but remaining positive. “I went out there, and I had fun. I did take it very seriously. I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics, and I gave my all. Truly,” she said in an ESPN interview.
me forcing my mom to watch the dance i made up in the pool pic.twitter.com/zbtwEFjpTG
— kenzi (@kenzianidiot) August 9, 2024
The post Over 58,000 Sign Petition Against Paris Olympics Struggle Breaker Raygun appeared first on Hip-Hop Wired.
The post Over 58,000 Sign Petition Against Paris Olympics Struggle Breaker Raygun appeared first on Black America Web.