Raygun was named ‘Female Athlete of the Year’ by a media outlet just months before she gained international fame at the Olympics with her controversial breakdancing routine.
Raechel Gunn, also known as Raygun, became an international hit after she took the stage at the Paris Olympics on Saturday with a performance that failed to score a single point from the judges.
While many Australians, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, supported Gunn for her ‘go for it’ attitude, others were outraged by her low scores and sometimes bizarre performances, including kangaroo jumps.
Many people asked about the qualifying process and how Gunn managed to get this far, despite her skills being clearly inferior to those of the other competitors in Paris.
Despite her loss at the Games, Gunn can take solace in the knowledge that the youth magazine Pedestrian named her ‘Female Athlete of the Year’ in June.
“Raygun’s finesse during the Olympics, and her continued hard work as a B-Girl in Australia, earned her the title of PEDESTRIAN TELEVISION Sportswoman of the Year,” the publication said.
Ms. Gunn promoted breakdancing’s Olympic debut shortly after receiving the award.
“It has the difficulty of gymnastics, the character and performativity of the Nicholas Brothers tap era, the effortlessness of skateboarding, and the responsiveness to your opponent of a debate,” she told Pedestrian in June.
Raygun was named ‘Female Athlete of the Year’ by a media outlet just months before she gained international fame at the Olympics for her controversial breakdancing routine
Raechel Gunn is pictured accepting Pedestrian’s ‘Sportswoman of the Year’ award
She added that there would be tough competition at the Games and that she had “really focused on preparing as much material as possible”.
“I just want to go out there and do my very best and show them what Australians are capable of.”
However, during the Games, Gunn lost all three of her round-robin bouts by a combined score of 54-0. Afterwards, she admitted that athletically, she could not compete with the tricks and spins of her younger opponents.
“I wanted to come here and do something new, different and creative. That’s my strength, my creativity,” she said.
Back home, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised Gunn when asked about criticism of her handling.
“Raygun made a good move, well done and a big compliment to her,” he told reporters in Adelaide on Sunday.
“That’s in the Australian tradition of people trying. She’s tried to represent our country, and that’s a good thing.
“Whether they won gold medals or just did their best, that’s all we asked. It’s the participation that really matters.”
Meares also supported Gunn and condemned the comments made by “trolls and keyboard warriors”.
“I love her character and I feel very sorry for her that she is being attacked like this,” she said.