Source: John Walton – PA Images / Getty
A petition seeking action against alleged wrongdoing by Paris Olympics The Raygun breaker went viral with over 58,000 signatures.
THE Paris The Olympics are over, but the controversy surrounding Australian B-girl Raygun and her performance – which included a move some called a “kangaroo hop” – is ongoing. This led to an online petition created under the charge of “unethical behaviour”, which has gathered thousands of signatures. The petition, which was created on Tuesday (August 13) by a person identifying himself as “Someone who hates corruption”, was on Change.org and eventually the report had over 58,000 signatures.
“We, the undersigned, are calling for immediate accountability and transparency in the recent actions of Rachel Gunn and Anna Mears in the process of selecting Australia's female representative breakdancer at the upcoming Olympic Games,” the petition begins. “Rachel Gunn, who created her own governing body for breakdancing, has manipulated the selection process to her advantage. Despite the clear talent and qualifications of other outstanding female breakdancers such as G Clef and Holy Molly, they have been unfairly overlooked. The NT Youlong Boys, a group of incredibly talented and underprivileged youth from the Northern Territory, were denied critical funding by Dr. The theory took off online after Raygun, also known as Rachel Gunn, earned a stunning score of zero in her three preliminary rounds of the competition, which went viral on social media, leading to a series of memes mocking her.
THE Sydney Morning Herald began their investigation of Gunn, a lecturer in the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Language and Literature at Macquarie University in Sydney. They found that the claim behind the online petition was not true and that Gunn advanced because he came first in one of the three regional competitions. THE Change.org the petition has since been dismissed following requests from the Australian Olympic Committee on Thursday (August 15). A spokesman for the AOC said in a statement that Gunn was “selected through a transparent and independent qualification and nomination process”.
Gunn, however, is still dealing with the international response to her Olympics, calling it “pretty devastating” but remaining positive. “I went out there and had fun. I took it very seriously. I worked on my preparation for the Olympics and gave it my all. Really,” he said to one ESPN interview.
