- Australian athlete Raygun ‘struggling’ after criticism
- Break dancer mocked for Olympic performance
An Australian Olympian has revealed that Raygun has been struggling following the global backlash to her breakdancing performance.
Jessica Fox has revealed that criticism over last week’s performance has had a “devastating” effect on Rachael “Raygun” Gunn.
His comment came as Australian Olympic competitors were welcomed back to home soil on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was among family and friends waiting inside a Qantas hangar at Sydney Airport.
However, Gunn was not among the smiling crew as she had decided to stay in Europe and travel with her husband, fellow breakdancer Samuel Free.
Fox, who took home two gold medals, said the hate Gunn received following her “interpretive” breakdancing performance had severely affected her.
“I spoke to her; it’s devastating for her,” Fox said. The Sydney Morning Herald.
“To see the cost… she’s human and it’s huge what she’s been through in the last week. She’s definitely been feeling it.
Jessica Fox revealed that criticism over last week’s performance has had a “devastating” effect on Rachael “Raygun” Gunn
Gunn was not among the Australian team when they arrived in Sydney, having previously decided to travel with her husband, breakdancing partner Samuel Free, after the Games ended.
“There’s a human being behind all of that, and people are so quick to be horrible. She doesn’t deserve that.”
The Australian team did everything they could to support Gunn during the wave of hate, with videos emerging of teammates dancing alongside the breakdancer ahead of the Games’ closing ceremony.
“It was special for us to be able to support her at the closing ceremony and show our appreciation for her as a valued member of our team,” Fox said.
Several other Australian Olympians have expressed their support for Gunn, including swimmer Zac Stubblety-Cook, who called the criticism “disappointing”, and Stubbelty-Cook, who said it was “amazing” to see Gunn smile during the ceremony.
Gunn has been the subject of countless memes and videos online ridiculing his Olympic performance.
Australian Olympic Committee chief Matt Carroll told the outlet that Gunn had been offered support services in Paris, which will continue once he returns to Australia.
However, that negativity has also manifested itself in the form of accusations that she did not deserve to be on the Olympic team and that she purposely missed the competition for the sake of an academic study.
Australian Olympic Committee chief Matt Carroll told the outlet that Gunn had been offered support services in Paris, which will continue once he returns to Australia.
“Someone is going to come first and someone is going to come last. But everyone is doing their best and they are extremely dedicated. I think they should be respected, regardless of what happens,” he said.