The Olympics concluded on Sunday in Paris with a spectacular closing ceremony that featured lots of pomp and circumstance and a high-flying daredevil act by actor Tom Cruise. The Hollywood legend performed a stunt to commemorate the official handover of Olympic duties to the city of Los Angeles, California, the location of the next Summer Olympics in 2028. While Los Angeles will feature the world’s greatest athletes competing in a variety of sports, one of those will not be breakdancing.
The inclusion of the dance competition in the Paris Games was always controversial, with many saying it had no place in the Olympics. Such calls grew even louder after witnessing the first-ever “breaking” competition in Olympic history. Videos of the dancers went viral, with one particular routine from Australian breaking competitor Rachel Gunn, who competed under the name Raygun. Canada and Japan won gold medals in the event, France and Lithuania won silver medals, and the United States and China won bronze.
Gunn’s performance led to worldwide ridicule for her dance moves as social media featured many comments mocking the performance. Yet, despite the widespread criticism of her performance, Gunn won over the hearts of many, even those who mocked her performance, and she became an overnight sensation because of her moves. Nevertheless, the sport of breakdancing will not be in the 2028 Summer Olympics – or any Olympics ever again.
Breaking was added to the Paris Games to attract younger viewers. Its presence on the list of sports to compete in was made possible by a rule that permitted local organizers from each city to include additional sports to compete in, according to reports. However, breakdancing is not included among the sports featured in the 2028 Olympics. This has nothing to do with the 2024 Games as the choice was already made several years ago.
Just as the organizers of the Paris Games could choose different sports, so did organizers in Los Angeles. That committee opted for cricket, squash, lacrosse, baseball, softball, and flag football to be included in the 2028 Games.
Ami Yuasa, known as B-Girl Ami in the breakdancing competition, won a gold medal for Japan in the sport. She expressed disappointment that breaking would not be included in the 2028 Games.
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“I feel so sad about it not happening in Los Angeles, because breaking was born in the USA,” Yuasa said. “Breaking is not just a sport, it’s also expressing myself and art.”
It is unknown whether breakdancing will ever return to the Olympics. After Los Angeles, the 2032 Summer Olympics is in Australia. The only hope for it to be included in those games is if the Australian committee includes it as one of the additional sports.
