Rachael Gunn may not be coming home with a medal but the Aussie Olympian and breaking athlete has left an indelible mark on the Games.
And we love her for it.
Her routine at the first, and possibly last Olympic-breaking event has taken the world by storm, with B-girl Raygun becoming an overnight sensation for her have-a-go Aussie attitude.
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With a thousand memes already engulfing the internet, Gunn took to Instagram with her head held high.
“Don’t be afraid to be different, go out there and represent yourself, you never know where that’s gonna take you,” she wrote in an Instagram post.
Media outlets and audiences around the world have reacted with wonder and enthusiasm for Gunn’s performance in the round-robin tournament, which saw her lose three “battles” against her opponents.
Rolling Stone said “‘Raygun’ Loses Dance Battles, Wins Our Hearts.”
The New York Times reported that Gunn had “Turned breaking on its Head.
“An Australian professor had some breaking moves, and people had thoughts,” NBC New York said.
Meanwhile buzfeed reported that “”Everyone Is Obsessed With This 36-Year-Old Breakdancer Named ‘Raygun.'”
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Online viewers reacted to her routine with fascination. And to the Olympics’ newest sport with a touch of bewilderment.
“Give Raygun the gold right now,” one viewer said.
Some were perplexed at the newly-minted Olympic sport.
Raygun, a 36-year-old full-time lecturer at Sydney’s Macquarie University, completed a PhD in breaking culture and is a lecturer in media, creative arts, literature and language.
“I was always going to be the underdog going in,” Raygun told Nine after her final performance.
“I’m not as well known, you know. Australia, we haven’t had the same level of investment going in.
“And look, I was never going to beat these b-girls at what they do, so I did what I do best and I went out and I showed myself, my creativity, my style, a little bit of Australian character so that I could try and make my mark on this world stage.”
And she’s showing no sign of backing down now.
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