Breaking is set to makes its Olympic debut at the 2024 Paris Games.
To attract new and younger audiences, Olympic chiefs have been emphasising the inclusion of urban sports. As part of this effort to stay relevant, breaking will join skateboarding, sport climbing on the Olympic schedule.
The new sport will take place across two days at the Place de la Concorde – a major public square situated at the end of the Champs-Elysees, where the other urban sports are also being held.
Two gold medals are up for grabs, with 32 breakers competing. The 16 women are in action on August 9 and 16 men on August 10.
What is breaking?
Breaking, more popularly known as breakdancing, is a dynamic style of street dance that originated in the South Bronx of New York City during the late 1970s. It is one of the four foundational elements of hip-hop culture, alongside DJing, MCing (rapping), and graffiti art.
Breaking involves a combination of footwork, floor moves, and freezes where dancers hold acrobatic poses, often balancing on one arm or elbow. The dance is characterised by its spontaneous nature, with dancers responding to the beats provided by a DJ and the energy of the crowd
Inclusion in the Olympics
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced this addition on December 7, 2020, as part of its effort to engage younger audiences and promote gender equality.
International competitions in breaking were first held in the 1990s, popularising the dance form both among hip-hop communities and the general public along the way
Breaking featured at the Summer Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018. Following its outstanding success at the Games in Argentina, breaking was added to the Paris 2024 Olympic programme as a new sport. Breakdancing competitions were also held at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games in the Philippines
Understanding the language of breaking
Breaking, with its distinct culture and language, involves a range of terms that define its competitive and expressive nature. A “battle” pits two solo breakers or crews against each other in a head-to-head competition, showcasing their skills and creativity.
Cypher refers to the circular space where breakers perform individually to the music, often engaging in friendly competition and exchanging moves.
When a dancer “throws down,” they energetically hit the floor, initiating their breaking routine with agility, strength, and rhythm. These terms encapsulate the essence of breaking as both a competitive sport and a vibrant expression of hip-hop culture.
Qualification
The qualification process for breaking at the 2024 Paris Olympics featured a total of 32 quota places, evenly divided between men and women, with National Olympic Committees (NOCs) allowed to enter up to two breakers per sex.
The majority of quota places were allocated through a tripartite route: champions from the 2023 WDSF World Championships in Leuven secured direct slots, while continental meets in Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania awarded spots to the highest-ranked breakers, respecting NOC limits. Additional slots were decided through a four-month-long Olympic Qualifier Series held worldwide from March to June 2024,.
France, as the host nation, holds one guaranteed spot each for a male B-Boy and a female B-Girl in the breaking events at Paris 2024. Additionally, four more quota places (two per gender) are available through Universality invitations, allowing eligible NOCs to participate in the competition..
Format and rules
The breaking competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games features two events: one for men and one for women, with 16 B-Boys and 16 B-Girls competing in thrilling solo battles. Dancers will showcase their skills with power moves like windmills, the 6-step, and freezes, adapting their style to the DJ’s tracks in hopes of securing judges’ votes for the inaugural Olympic breaking medals.
Each battle consists of two 60-second throw downs (three in the knockout phase), where breakers freestyle their routines to music selected by the DJ. A host guides the event, and nine judges vote at the battle’s end to determine the winner. Instead of traditional scoring, judges use a digital slider to indicate the breaker leading the head-to-head matchup. For instance, if breaker A outperforms breaker B, judges adjust the slider in favour of breaker A.
Judges evaluate dancers based on technique, vocabulary (variety of moves), execution, musicality, and originality, each criterion contributing 20% to the final score. The breaker with the highest average score across these categories wins the round.
During the round-robin stage, the 16 competitors are divided into groups of four, where each breaker competes against others in their group. The top two from each group advance to the quarter-finals, marking the start of the knockout phase which will determine the event’s ultimate winner.
Stars to watch out
In the men’s competition, three-time world champion Phil Wizard from Canada and Japanese breakdance star Shigekix are the top favourites. Shigekix achieved third place at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires. Other well-known names in the breaking scene are French b-boy Danny and b-boy Amir from Kazakhstan.
Among the women, the U.S. American Logistx and the Japanese B-Girl Ami, who won the 2022 World Championships, and breaking legend B-Girl Ayumi, who continues to perform at the highest level at the age of 39, are considered the favourites.
Other stars of the breaking scene include B-Girl India from the Netherlands, who won the 2022 European Championships, as well as B-Girl 671 from China and B-Girl MadMax from Belgium.
Will breaking remain an Olympic sport?
It might seem logical to consider breaking would be part of Los Angeles 2028. However, breaking has been excluded.
The World Dance Sport Federation is striving to regain a sport for Brisbane 2032, and the two days of breaking in Paris could influence the decision.
