The Olympics are a great way for athletes around the world to showcase their skill and talent. Going head-to-head with other competitors unites many countries and the viewers watching. With the abundance of sports played, only a select amount are considered for the Olympics. Events including men’s and women’s gymnastics, swimming, track and field, volleyball and much more are anticipated when hearing about the Olympics. Breakdancing and shooting, on the other hand, shocked many spectators when seeing the sports included in the event list, as well as other unique activities.
Caroline Byers (12) loves to watch the swimming portion of the Olympics but has strong opinions on Rachel Gunn and the Turkish shooter.
“The sports I like to watch when the Olympics are on are swimming, gymnastics, track/field and basketball. I think Rachel, the breakdancer, should not be able to participate in the next Olympics. The Turkish man was really cool to see because everyone else had gear and he did not,” Byers said.
Originally a form of hip-hop, breakdancing, also known as breaking, has been around since the 1970s. Breaking had its peak in the 1980s but is making a comeback, which was fueled by the 2024 Summer Olympics. Breaking was added to the Olympics as an attempt to bring a younger audience and style to the Summer Games. Rachel Gunn, from Australia, made an impression on the Breaking community with her kangaroo and snake-like moves. Gunn has been a dancer her whole life, but discovered breaking from her husband, Samuel Free, who encouraged her to pursue it. In October 2023, Gunn and 14 other women competed at the Olympic qualifiers for the Oceania area. There Gunn proved herself and was selected to compete in Paris. Now after her gripping performance, there has been much debate on how she got to the Olympics because of how unique her breaking moves were. Nevertheless, breaking will not be in the Los Angles Summer Olympics in 2028. This isn’t the end of breaking in the Olympics though. As of right now, breaking is included for the Brisbane Summer Olympics in 2032.
Kaia Brown (9) watched the Olympics over the summer with her family. Some moments, though, she thought were very interesting.
“I mostly watched track and field and swimming. I did see the Australian breakdancer, and she had an impactful performance. I think she is disappointed in herself for losing a few dance battles though,” Brown said.
While breaking is a unique and popular sport around the world, so is shooting. Since shooting requires much focus, most shooters wear side blinders, typically attached to glasses or a hat, for better aim and precision, as well as proactive clothing including thick gloves and jackets. Shooters also make sure they are in a stable stance and are very balanced when making a shot. However, Yusuf Dikec, representing Turkey, didn’t wear any protective gear but normal glasses, even with one hand in his pocket, making him stand out above the rest. At the Olympics, Dikec won a silver medal in mixed team 10-meter air pistol – Turkey’s first medal in shooting. Even though Dikec looked like the underdog, he has been shooting for over 20 years and has been in the Olympics since the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, China.
Thomas Coleman (11) enjoyed the men’s freestyle wrestling this summer and shooting. He thinks it was brave for the Turkish shooter to not wear any gear.
“I did watch the Olympics and really liked watching the men’s freestyle wrestling. I think it was pretty cool and impressive that the Turkish shooter was able to win the silver medal without wearing any gear,” Coleman said.
