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Rachael “Raygun” Gunn, the Australian breakdancer who gained international attention for her performance at the Paris Olympics has addressed the "hate" that she felt was "devastating."
After her performance in the round-robin stage of the B-girls breaking event, when she lost all three of her bouts, she received criticism on social media.
However, she released an Instagram video message on Thursday, August 15, in which she claimed to have taken the competition "very seriously" and "given it everything."
She greeted her fans at the beginning of the video and continued:
"I just wanna start by thanking all the people who have supported me. I really appreciate the positivity and I am glad I was able to bring some joy into your lives, that is what I had hoped.”
Raygun further said:
"I didn't realise that that would also open the door to so much hate, which has frankly been pretty devastating.”
Rachael “Raygun” Gunn addressed the criticism she received following her Olympic performance
Raygun has recently spoken about the reaction she received to her Olympic performance. The 36-year-old received backlash after performing several viral moves, including the sprinkler, snake slithering, and kangaroo hopping. However, she lost all three matches.
Even her fashion choices drew criticism, as she wore her Australian Olympic tracksuit and headgear while the other competitors appeared in casual attire.
Gunn has now resorted to Instagram to correct the record in light of the recent claims about her breakdance. She has emphasized on social media that she gave her everything to qualify for the Olympics and that she worked hard to get there.
Raygun began by thanking everyone in the emotional video. She went on to say she was grateful for the support and that she was happy to have been able to cheer up her supporters.
However, she later acknowledged that it had been devastating for her because she had no idea that it would also invite a great deal of criticism. She continued by saying that even though she had a great time, she did take it very seriously.
She further added in the video:
“I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics, and I gave it my all. Truly. I'm honored to have been a part of the Australian Olympic team and to be part of breaking's Olympic debut.”
Raygun continued:
“What the other athletes have achieved has just been phenomenal.”
Gunn finished her video statement by saying that she would be traveling to Europe for "a few weeks" and said:
“I’m going to be in Europe for a few weeks for some pre-planned downtime, but I’d really like to ask the press to please stop harassing my family, my friends, the Australian breaking community and the broader street dance community.”
Raygun finally concluded:
“Everyone has been through a lot as a result of this, so I ask you to please respect their privacy. I’ll be happy to answer more questions on my return to Australia.”
She then started directing everyone to the Australian Olympic Committee's (AOC) statement regarding the same.
Following the introduction of the viral petition demanding that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the AOC hold Rachel Gunn and Anna Mears accountable for unethical conduct and Olympic selection, the AOC issued a statement on Thursday, August 15.
As reported by several sources like ESPN, AOC CEO Matt Carroll denounced the petition, calling it "vexatious, misleading, and bullying," and insisted that it be removed. He further claimed that Gunn was chosen "through a transparent and independent qualification event and nomination process" and that the petition is filled with "numerous falsehoods" and is intended to "engender hatred" against him.
He further added that the organization had no involvement in the athlete nomination process for the AOC Selection Committee and the qualification events.
Nevertheless, the Olympic committee has not released any statements regarding this matter yet.
