A guide to ‘breaking’ aka ‘breakdancing’, the new sport at the 2024 Paris Olympics

He Olympic Games This summer, breakdancing (or breaking, as it will be known at the Olympic Games) will have a new sport.

Originating in the Bronx neighborhood of New York in the late 1970s, and considered part of the “four elements” of hip-hop, along with rap, graffiti and DJing, it is made up of groups that seek to outdo each other with acrobatic dance moves to the rhythm of the music.

Its growing popularity, with international competitions first held in the 1990s, ultimately did not go unnoticed by the International Olympic Committee. eager to reach new and younger audiences.

In spite of the The anger of the Games traditionalists, The inclusion of breaking in the programme of the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires was met with great acclaim, and now the sport makes its major debut in Paris.

When and where will breaking be held at the Paris Olympics?

Breaking competitions take place at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, home of the newest urban Olympic sport.

The women’s competition will take place on Friday, August 9, and the men’s competition a day later, on Saturday, August 10.

To view the full schedule for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, click here.

What is the format of the competition?

In both the men’s and women’s events, 16 b-boys and 16 b-girls will compete against each other to be crowned individual champions.

One-on-one competitive dance matches are known as battles, and each battle is divided into the best of three rounds, called “throwdowns.”

Each challenge begins with one breaker (individual) beginning their performance, which can last up to 60 seconds, and then the opposing breaker responds with their own challenge. Each competitor performs to music chosen by the live DJ and each round is judged.

Each set of 16 breakers will be divided into four groups of four participants, who will compete in an initial round-robin stage, with the two group winners advancing to knockout stages in the form of quarter-finals, semi-finals and then battles for the bronze and gold medals.

How is the breakup judged?

A panel of five judges scores each battle based on technique, vocabulary, execution, musicality and originality, with each category accounting for 20 percent of the final score.

The winner is the competitor who wins the majority of the three-round battle, and judges use a real-time digital slider to score the battles.

Judges also have three misconduct buttons that they can use to penalize an offender when he or she acts or makes inappropriate gestures.

Are there any Brits worth watching out for?

There will be no British participation in breaking’s Olympic debut as no b-boys or b-girls will qualify for the Games.

Who are the favorites?

In the women’s category, keep an eye on Lithuania’s Dominika Banević (nicknamed Nicka) and Japan’s Ayumi Fukushima (nicknamed Ayumi), who faced off in the final of last year’s World Breaking Championships. Banević, who also took home European gold earlier this year, took the title, while bronze went to France’s Sya Dembélé (nicknamed Syssy).

In the men’s category, American Victor Montalvo (nicknamed Victor) is the current world champion, after beating Canadian Philip Kim (Phil Wizard) to take silver, while Shigeyuki Nakarai (nicknamed Shigekix) took bronze.

Who is competing?

16 girls b

• Dominika Banevič (Lithuania) – nickname: Nicka

• Sunny Choi (USA) – nickname: Sunny

• Fatima Zahra El-Mamouny (Morocco) – nickname: Elmamouny

• India Sardjoe (Netherlands) – nickname: India

• Liu Qingyi (China) – nickname: 671

• Rachael Gunn (Australia) – nickname: Raygun

• Ami Yuasa (Japan) – nickname: Ami

• Ayumi Fukushima, (Japan) – nickname: Ayumi

• Sya Dembélé (France) – nickname: Syssy

• Logan Elanna Edra (USA) – nickname: Logistx

• Zeng Yingying (China) – nickname: Yingzi

• Kateryna Pavlenko (Ukraine) – nickname: Kate

• Antilai Sandrini (Italy) – nickname: Anti

• Vanessa Cartaxo (Portugal) – nickname: Vanessa

• Anna Ponomarenko (Ukraine) – nickname: Stefani

• Manizha Talash (Refugee Olympic Team) – nickname: Talash

• Carlota Dudek (France)* – nickname: Miss Carlota
  *reserve

16 boys b

• Victor Montalvo, (USA) – nickname: Victor

• Bilal Mallakh, (Morocco) – nickname: Billy

• Danis Civil, (France) – nickname: Dany Dann

• Jeffrey Dan Arpie Dunne (Australia) – nickname: J Attack

• Philip Kim, (Canada) – nickname: Phil Wizard

• Shigeyuki Nakarai, (Japan) – nickname: Shigekix

• Lee-Lou Demierre, (Netherlands) – nickname: Lee

• Kim Hongyul (South Korea) – nickname: Hongten

• Hiroto Ono, (Japan) – nickname: Hiro10

• Qi Xiangyu, (China) – nickname: Lithe-ing

• Jeffrey Louis, (USA) – nickname: Jeffro

• Amir Zakirov, (Kazakhstan) – nickname: Amir

• Menno Van Gorp, (Netherlands) – nickname: Menno

• Sun Chen, (Chinese Taipei) – nickname: Quake

• Oleg Kuznietsov, (Ukraine) – nickname: Kuzya

• Gaëtan Alin, (France)* – nickname: Lagaet
  *reserve

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.