Paris throw down for B-boys, B-girls

LAUSANNE • For the Olympics, adding breakdancing to the competition roster is a choreographed move to get more young people involved in sports.

Breakdancing, officially known in sport terms as "breaking", appeared at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, in the form of head-to-head "battles".

It cleared its final hurdle to feature in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games last week, bringing the wholly original, electric art form to sport's biggest stage.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach believes that its introduction is "one of the results of the Olympic Agenda 2020".

"We had a clear priority to introduce sports (that are) particularly popular among the younger generation and taking into consideration the urbanisation of sport," he said.

Considered one of the pillars of hip-hop culture, breaking originated in New York in the 1970s and has spread globally, enjoying enormous popularity beyond the United States.

A 2019 Olympic Programme Commission Report estimated there were roughly one million participants in breaking worldwide and the 2019 Red Bull BC One World Final in Mumbai racked up more than 50 million views across online streaming platforms.

"It can resonate with a lot of people because hip-hop culture resonates with a lot of people," said Logan Edra, a 17-year-old American dancer who goes by the performance name Logistx and who aspires to win Olympic gold.

"It being in the Olympics, it makes sense that people would refer to it as (a sport) but I think one thing for the breaking community is we want to make sure that it's not known as just a sport but an art, a sport, a culture."

Richard "Crazy Legs" Colon, one of the pioneers during his upbringing in the Bronx in the 1970s, said he applauded breaking's inclusion in the Olympics - which inevitably would give more exposure to the sport - but wanted to ensure its cultural core remained intact.

"This is true folk art from the music to the dance, to the DJ to the rapper," said Colon, who appeared in dance films of the 1980s including Beat Street and Flashdance.

"We've already legitimised ourselves so we're not looking to the Olympics for legitimacy."

Key elements in breaking include top rocks - typically a competitor's introductory dance moves - footwork, power moves and freezes. Power moves are explosive displays such as spins, while freezes are when a performer sticks a pose.

In a blend of artistry and athleticism, competitors are evaluated not only on technical skill but also creativity and style, with strength, speed, rhythm and agility providing an edge.

Paris Games chief Tony Estanguet said that organisers had been on the hunt for new sports to broaden the appeal of the Olympics and were drawn to breaking's potential to attract a younger fan base and grow the Olympic audience in the Internet age.

He added that though the decision had come in for some criticism, most of the feedback he had received had been overwhelmingly positive.

He said: "It's a sport that is widely watched on all digital platforms, widely consumed by young people... we are really adding events that come from a completely different world, with fans, who would not necessarily be connected to the Olympic Games otherwise."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS