Embattled Australian Olympian Rachael “Raygun” Gunn revealed Wednesday, September 4, that she hasn’t yet watched her breakdancing performance back in full after the viral routine sparked widespread mockery and backlash.
The 36-year-old made the startling confession in her first interview interview since her controversial breakdancing routine made up of kangaroo hopping and sprinkler moves at last month’s Paris games which catapulted her to global infamy and made her an epitome of internet mockery..
“I have seen little bits and pieces, but I will watch it eventually,” Gunn told Network 10’s “The Project.”
Gunn, who scored zero points in all three of her Olympic battles, admitted she also can’t bring herself to watch a drama Sketch that aired on Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show” in the aftermath.
“I haven’t actually watched it the sketch because I don’t think I am in a place to watch it,” Gunn said, adding she had mixed emotions about the skit performed by comedian Rachel Dratch.
“I don’t know whether to hug him or yell at him,” she continued, referring to Fallon.
Elsewhere in the interview, Gunn defended her breakdancing record but also apologized to Australia’s breakdancing community for the furore her performance caused.
Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn tells us how she qualified for breakdancing at the Olympics. pic.twitter.com/meDUchCeYJ
— The Project (@theprojecttv) September 4, 2024
Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn tells us what she thought of the Jimmy Fallon sketch. pic.twitter.com/vzclWzXqvc
— The Project (@theprojecttv) September 4, 2024
Asked if she genuinely thought she was Australia’s best female breakdancer, Gunn responded: “I think my record speaks to that.”
“I was the top-ranked Australian B-girl in 2020 and 2022 and 2023. I have been invited to represent at how many World Championships… So, the record is there. But anything can happen in a battle.”
Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn tells us if she thinks she is the best female breaker in Australia. pic.twitter.com/M6YzOtLNlB
— The Project (@theprojecttv) September 4, 2024
Gunn’s routine, which she performed in an Australian team polo and high-waisted sweatpants, quickly went viral something she said she didn’t realize until an Australian Olympics Committee liaison showed it to her.
“As soon as I finished my rounds, my media liaison from the AOC said, ‘Oh, there’s a bit of a storm brewing on social media. You might want to go off socials’. I didn’t understand the scale of it. I did preview some comments, and I was like, ‘Oh, no,’ and this kind of sick feeling started coming out,” she said.
“It is really sad to hear those criticisms and I am very sorry for the backlash that the community has experienced, but I can’t control how people react.”
In the aftermath, Gunn, a breaking researcher at Macquarie University in Sydney was hit by claims she manipulated the Olympic selection process by setting up her own governing body and had her husband judge the qualification trial.
The allegations were later denounced by the country’s Olympics Committee and the World DanceSport Federation.