Raygun’s Olympics breakdancing teammate Jeff ‘J Attack’ Dunne has jumped to her defense as controversy rolls on following the Australian’s performance in Paris.
Last weekend, the sport of breakdancing made its Olympic debut and one of the lasting images was the performance of Raygun – 36-year-old Sydney university professor Rachael Gunn.
She did a ‘kangaroo dance’ among other questionable moves during her routine, and scored zero points.
Gunn was subsequently heavily criticized for her performance with parodies even being played out on a late night television show in the United States.
But her teammate has now broken his silence on her routine and insisted she was more than qualified to represent their country.
Raygun’s Olympics breakdancing teammate Jeff ‘J Attack’ Dunne has jumped to her defense
The performance of breakdancer Raygun went viral and has led to brutal trolling online
‘All I know is she represented hard,’ J Attack, 16, told the Herald Sun.
‘She has been the leading breaker in Australia for the women and I acknowledge her and respect her 100 per cent.’
Raygun has kept a low profile since the closing ceremony, remaining under the radar by going on holiday with her husband and coach Samuel Free instead of returning home to Australia with her fellow Olympians.
On Thursday, Gunn broke her silence and said she had been left heartbroken by the ‘pretty devastating’ online hate she has received in the days since her routine went viral.
She also commented on the resulting reaction and the ‘misinformation’ that has circulated about her selection on the Australian team.
‘Hi everyone, Raygun here,’ she said in a video posted on Instagram. ‘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.
On Thursday, Raygun spoke for the first time since going viral at the Olympic Games in Paris
A petition has been signed by nearly 50,000 people calling for her to be held ‘accountable’
‘I didn’t realize that that would also open the door to to much hate which has frankly been pretty devastating.
‘While I went out there and had fun, I did take it very seriously. 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. What the other athletes have achieved has just been phenomenal.’
Raygun then turned her attention to the conspiracy theories that have erupted online regarding her performance, with some suggesting that she entered as part of a ‘social experiment’.
Almost 50,000 people have also signed a change.org petition calling for ‘immediate accountability and transparency in the recent actions’ of Gunn and Paris chef de mission Anna Meares over how Gunn won selection to represent Australia in Paris.
The call to action accuses the 36-year-old of ‘manipulating the selection process to her own advantage’ so she could be chosen above more talented Aussie female breakers – an allegation described as ‘raising serious questions about the fairness and integrity of the process’.
No evidence has been provided to back up the petition’s claims.
The petition has been slammed by the AOC who responded with 12 myth busters
AOC boss Matt Carroll said the petition, which demands a public apology from Gunn and Meares, is ‘appalling’ and has ‘no factual basis’.
‘In regards to the allegations and misinformation floating around, I’d like to ask everyone to please refer to the recent statement made by the AOC as well as the posts on the Ausbreaking Instagram page as well as the WDSF breaking for gold page,’ Raygun said.
She also attempted to debunk claims she scored zero points across her three battles, saying: ‘Bit of a fun fact for you: there are actually no points in breaking. If you want to see how the judges thought I compared to my opponents, you can actually see the comparison percentages across all five criteria on Olympics.com, all the results are there.’
At the time of publication, Raygun still has zero points on the official Olympics website while her American opponent, Logistx, has two.
‘I’m going to be in Europe for a few weeks, for some pre-planned downtime but I would really like to ask the press to pleae stop harassing my family, my friends, the Australian breaking community and the broader street dance community. Everyone has been through a lot as a result of this, so I’d like to ask for their privacy.
‘I will be happy to answer more questions on my return to Australia.’