2024 Paris Olympic Games breaking judge explains Raygun’s score

Breaking judge MGbility has explained why Aussie dancer Raygun received no votes during her viral outing. It comes as the Aussie’s mental health is being monitored due to online backlash.

Breaking judge MGbility moonwalks into the room and explains why Australia’s Rachael Gunn didn’t receive a single vote in her imperfect and polarising performance at the Paris Olympics.

Gunn’s mental health is being closely monitored after the barrage of online abuse following her three dance routines at la Concorde.

She received a trio of big fat zeros on the scoreboard and here’s why, according to the head judge.

“I feel personally very sorry,” MGbility said.

“The breaking and hip hop community definitely stands behind her. She was just trying to bring something new, something original and something that represents her country.

Raygun didn’t land a single vote from judges in three rounds. Picture: Getty Images

“We stay with her. We have five criteria in the comparative judging system. Just her level was maybe not as high as the other competitors.

“Again, we’re using a comparative judging system. Her competitors were just better but it doesn’t mean that she did really bad. She did her best.”

Gunn, aka Raygun, did the sprinkler, hooped like a kangaroo, yawned at an opponent – it was nothing if not dripping with Australiana.

“She was representing Australia and Oceania and did her best,” MGbility said.

“She won the Oceania qualifier officially. If some people are wondering how she got into the Olympic Games, she qualified from her region.

Judges have explained she just wasn’t as good as other competitors but that doesn’t mean she was awful. Picture: Getty Images

“Unfortunately for her, the other b-girls were better. That’s why she didn’t score any votes in her rounds.”

Gunn couldn’t cop a break from the panel. Zero votes for her first routine. Zero for her second. Zero for her third. A million views on the internet, though, and then a million more.

“Breaking is all about originality and bringing something new to the table from your country or region and this is exactly what Raygun was doing,” the Olympics’ head judge said.

“She got inspired by her surroundings, which in this case, for example, was you know – kangaroo. The animal.

“For breaking, when you look for innovations or originality, you always search outside of dancing. Martial arts, how the animals move, anything.”

Raygun’s mental health is being monitored following the backlash. Picture: AFP

In something of an Eric the Eel moment, Gunn has become headline news everywhere from this masthead to the New York Times.

“I don’t think personally that she stole the show because there were so many other beautiful moments,” MGbility said.

“She was trying for originality and doing this to represent her country, her region, and she created some original moves which could be maybe funny or entertaining for others.

“For us, she basically represented breaking and hip hop by bringing something new to the table. From our perspective, it was nothing really shocking.”

Art or sport? Worthy of the Olympics or not? Canada’s B-boy gold medallist Phil Wizard said, “Yes, coming into it, we see ourselves as a dance, and an art, and a culture. But I think a lot of these things are just labels. We have a very common saying within the world of breaking. “Train like an athlete but think like an artist.”

Originally published as 2024 Paris Olympic Games breaking judge explains Raygun’s score