The man behind Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn’s viral Olympic performance warned the world this was coming.
The Australian made headlines for all the wrong reasons at the Paris Olympics, chosen to represent her country in the debut sport of breaking, where she put in a disastrous showing after being coached by her husband, fellow breakdancer Samuel Free.
Gunn failed to score a single point in three “battles” and was widely criticised for her routine and uniform, both of which were distinctly Australian.
That included hopping like a kangaroo, slithering like a snake and even using “the sprinkler,” an iconic Australian dance movie widely used by men who can’t dance.
Although she became the butt of jokes online, Gunn received a very different reception from her fellow Australian Olympians when she performed for them just before the closing ceremony.
Samuel Free is a title-winning breakdancer in his own right and has been Raygun’s coach and husband since 2018.
In an interview with Stan Sport ahead of his wife’s performance in Paris, he revealed that embarrassing moves would likely be included in her routine.
“There are mixed emotions, there is a lot of pressure and also a lot of emotion,” he said.
“We can show something we’re excited about and love now to the rest of the world, which largely hasn’t seen what we have to show.”
“There will certainly be some signatures to show and there will be some surprises too, a bit of Australian flavour that he will try to bring.”
Raygun’s attempts to incorporate Australian themes into his routine failed at the 2024 Paris Olympics
Her coach was her husband Samuel Free, who had his own Olympic dreams until he suffered a serious injury.
Free made the difficult decision to stop being a competitor and become a coach for the team.
When Stan’s host jokingly asked if Raygun would use the sprinkler at the Olympics, he replied, “Look, anything’s possible, there’s a lot of things that happen at that time.”
“We’re not going to reveal any secrets just yet before the competition, but stay tuned. There will be some surprises.”
Raygun was introduced to the sport by her future husband, but admitted that she was not immediately convinced by the idea.
“Not long after we started dating, he took me to Hornsby PCYC where he was training (breaking) with the boys,” she told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“I thought it was cool, but it wasn’t something I would ever try. As a dancer, I had spent years learning choreography; these guys were all doing their own thing, which was intimidating.
“She encouraged me to try it, but it was difficult and overwhelming. A woman’s body is different than a man’s – we have hips, so when a crewmate would say, ‘Just kick up,’ I’d say, ‘That doesn’t work for me.'”
“But Sammy acknowledged that, which made me feel empowered.”
Raygun became an overnight sensation for all the wrong reasons after failing to score a single point during breaking’s first appearance at the Olympics.
Despite the negative reaction from the public, Raygun was treated like a hero by her fellow Olympians in Paris when she did some breakdancing exercises in the village before the closing ceremony (pictured)
Free hinted that his wife would include some classic Australian films ahead of her appearance at the Paris Games.
She soon found her groove in the sport and eventually took part in her first competition in 2012 and became an academic in the sport.
Gunn became a lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney and completed her PhD in Philosophy with her thesis entitled ‘Deterritorialising Gender in the Sydney Breakdance Scene: A B-Girl’s Experience of B-Boying’.
However, an anterior cruciate ligament injury all but ruined Samuel’s competitive ambitions and it soon became clear that Gunn was the most likely to achieve his Olympic dream.
“We were very surprised to learn that breaking was going to be at the Paris Olympics,” Free said.
‘Rachael was Australia’s best woman and I probably could have qualified, but I made the difficult but pragmatic decision to put my team coaching skills to use.’
Gunn admits it can be frustrating having her husband as a coach, but credited him with getting her to the Olympics.
“I was annoyed when he kept pushing me. I never thought I would ever go to the Olympics, but Sammy could see potential,” she said before the Paris Games.
‘Qualifying for the Olympics has changed our lives; it’s an incredible platform to showcase what we do.
“Sammy would probably have liked to compete too, but we had a limited number of people in Australia with the necessary experience to train him. He may not be performing well, but his imprint will be on my every move.”
