Olympics fans have reacted strongly after Australia’s Olympic chief blamed criticism of breakdancer Raygun on sexism as athletics legend Sally Pearson weighs in on the dramas.
Chef de mission Anna Meares says Gunn should be applauded for her courage, rather than pilloried for her performance at the Paris Games.
Gunn, known as Raygun, failed to score a point when breaking made its debut as an Olympic sport in Paris on Friday.
Gunn has since been a target of criticism for not only her performance but her appearance, online and in some mainstream media.
She hopped like a kangaroo, resembled a T-Rex at times and rolled around the floor in a disjointed way that confused and amused Aussies back home watching the sport for the first time.
‘In 2008, she was locked in a room crying, being involved in a male-dominated sport as the only woman,’ Meares said.
‘And it took great courage for her to continue on and fight for her opportunity to participate in a sport that she loved.
‘That got her to winning the Olympic qualifying event to be here in Paris.
Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn’s breaking routines in Paris saw her go viral for all the wrong reasons after she failed to pick up a single point as the sport made its Olympics debut
Australia’s chef de mission in Paris, Anna Meares (pictured) said criticism of Raygun is the same sort of misogynistic abuse that has been directed at generations of female athletes
‘She is the best breakdancer female that we have for Australia.’
Meares likened the criticism to historic misogynistic abuse directed at female athletes as they fought for recognition in the sporting world.
‘Now you look at the history of what we have had as women athletes, have faced in terms of criticism, belittlement, judgement, and simple comments like ‘they shouldn’t be there’,’ she said
‘One-hundred years ago, leading into Paris 1924, Australia sent a team of 37 athletes – none were women.
‘One-hundred years later, we have 256 women representing here.’
Fans hit back at the remarks from Meares, insisting that sexism has nothing to do with the worldwide reaction to Raygun’s moves.
Raygun left many viewers either in hysterics or scratching their heads with a routine that saw her hop like a kangaroo and even resemble a T-Rex at times
Fans say criticism of the Aussie sensation has nothing to do with sexism
‘Saying the criticism of Raygun (can’t even believe I am typing that name!) is sexism = peanut. A total copout!’ posted one X user.
‘Interesting deflection… Instead of owning for their mistake and shortfall in the selection methodology, she decided to go down the line of sexism. From what I read, couldn’t see anyone engaging in that. Very weak response from Australia’s Chef de mission,’ posted another.
‘No sexism here. She just sucked. If a guy did that same dance, world would say the same thing,’ replied another.
Meanwhile, Aussie Olympic legend Sally Pearson has come out in defence of Gunn, saying that not every athlete’s goal is to win gold.
‘Pierre de Coubertin, known as the father of the modern Olympics, famously said ‘the most important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning, but taking part’,’ Pearson wrote in a News Corp column.
‘That’s exactly what Gunn did and it’s a point everybody has overlooked in the wake of her display.
Aussie sports icon Sally Pearson says Gunn has earnt her spot in the team and got fans talking
‘She also has everyone talking and I’m sure after her performance, people will be talking for a long time.’
Gunn, a 36-year-old Australian university lecturer, lost all three of her round-robin battles by a combined score of 54-0.
Pearson went on to note how accomplished Gunn was and how much effort she had put in.
‘It really is a shame that the Paris Olympics is Australia’s best ever Games sitting third on the medal table with 18 Gold but some people will only remember Australia’s performance from what Gunn did,’ she wrote.
‘It seems as though, whether you agree with it or not, whether you think this is an Olympic sport or not, or whether it’s a high performance sport or not, Raygun has ticked all the boxes and legitimately earnt her spot on the team and she will be forever etched in Australia’s history as Australia’s lone female b-girl.’
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