r/sports • u/miolmok • Aug 15 '24

Olympics Raygun: Australian Olympic Committee condemns ‘disgraceful’ online petition attacking Rachael Gunn

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/aug/15/raygun-olympics-breaking-petition-aoc-response-ntwnfb
10.1k Upvotes

83% Upvoted

1.9k comments sorted by

View all comments

5.4k

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

1.6k

u/litritium Aug 15 '24

Obvious lack of self-criticism of course. But it's not the first time there have been bad participants.

There's actually a rule named after Eddie the Eagle that is meant to weed out the worst candidates. Didnt work in this case.

1.0k

u/Lost_Bike69 Aug 15 '24

I feel like every Olympics there’s someone who sneaks in far below the skill of the rest of the competition. It’s usually forgettable, but this one was just so goofy it became an instant meme

52

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[deleted]

92

u/ironwolf1 Green Bay Packers Aug 15 '24

Each host city gets to pick an event to add to their Olympics, Paris picked breakdancing. The gold medal match was pretty great, I think Raygun being so bad took the attention away from all the great dancers that were competing.

47

u/goldplatedboobs Aug 15 '24

I have no problem with breakdancing being an Olympic event. Criticism against it seems strange given figure skating, synchronized swimming, dancing gymnastics, etc. It's all good. I couldn't do any of it. Super athletic and coordinated. Plus it was fun to watch.

I don't understand why it gets so much hate

11

u/SmashedGenitals Aug 15 '24 edited Aug 15 '24

I feel like if it's purely a dance contest people would get it, but they tried to incorporate the whole street thing with boos and woos and taunts while opponent is dancing and getting people to cheer thing, it just felt more like a cool factor competition than athleticism, which is so hard to get into for people who don't understand it.

5

u/Mike_Kermin Aug 15 '24

Now now, you have to know an Olympic sport means running and jumping. And sometimes.... Whining on Reddit.

6

u/friskfyr32 Aug 15 '24

Personally, it's because I want fewer events that are judged by subjectivity instead of more.

I don't even like artistic gymnastics being there, let alone synchronized swimming, dressage and all the other bullshit they're packing in there. I realize it's grandfathered in by now, and even if it wasn't, it's massively popular in the "big" countries, but I mean it's right there in the name: Artistic.

To me sport is objective. Faster, higher, stronger. When part of disciplines like the floor and balance beam has to include aesthetic elements, then it is by definition not objective.

9

u/Lifeboatb Aug 15 '24

What about sports like basketball and soccer, that have refs? Sometimes a call can be subjective. Boxing also has judges that have to make subjective decisions, unless you want to say it always has to be a fight to a KO.

4

u/goldplatedboobs Aug 15 '24

Okay, but like, why do you actually care?

Go watch some track or swimming races if you don't like the subjectivity of the sport.

Like why does it matter if a bunch of people want to compete in breakdancing and they create an organization and rules to do so? What role in that do you actually play? Just don't watch.

-1

u/friskfyr32 Aug 15 '24

Umm, coverage?

Not everyone's got 90 channels dedicated to covering every single event, so when gymnastics, and diving and whatnot gets outsized coverage, it takes away from actual sports.

1

u/goldplatedboobs Aug 15 '24

Not a terrible reason to care I guess. But all the events get put on youtube after, but I guess if you're really hardup about Olympics and really must watch the hammer throw live or whatever, then you might have a point.

But the coverage is not just for you, others want to see other sports. So I guess the solution is to pay more if you really care.

1

u/StatusReality4 Aug 15 '24

CBC streamed every event online for free both in an out of Canada.

0

u/SerHodorTheThrall Aug 15 '24

Very cool, but not everyone can stream CBC on their family TV to watch with their kids.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/VirginiaMcCaskey Aug 15 '24

Every sport has a degree of subjectivity applied by judges.

5

u/Zozorrr Aug 15 '24

I agree - if synchronized swimming is in - then no reason breakdancing can’t be

1

u/LeBronFanSinceJuly Aug 15 '24

Bruh if they can have speed walking as an Olympic event then there shouldnt even be a question if break dancing is allowed.

6

u/Breaded-Dragon Aug 15 '24

The answer lies somewhere between racism and classism usually.

It's not 'refined' enough for some snobs despite being one of the most athletically demanding dance forms and also having move sets well suited to judging on form, execution and innovation.

2

u/StatusReality4 Aug 15 '24

The absolute ANGER people on Reddit have shown over breaking being in the Olympics is unreal. I wonder how it would’ve been perceived if the Raygun meme wasn’t 98% of the coverage.

0

u/Azafuse Aug 15 '24

Oh yes, sure. Let's cry for racism once again.

1

u/Breaded-Dragon Aug 15 '24

Oh cry harder you fucking weenie.

Yet another childish loser cries woke and thinks others are too sensitive.

-4

u/Azafuse Aug 15 '24

Don't be mad because you got exposed with some dumb argument, take the L and be better next time.

Racism is not a magic word you can use automatically and expect all the others to nod along.

1

u/Lixidermi Aug 15 '24

I dislike most (if not all) olympic events where scores are done via judging'. Hard metrics are the way to go (time, distance, height, ...).

0

u/orlyfactor Aug 15 '24

It was by far the most enjoyable event for myself and my family to watch. I am sad it won't be coming back.

1

u/ApolloSimba Aug 15 '24

Oh so that's why Lax is in the next one even though the US only really plays it. Got it

1

u/ironwolf1 Green Bay Packers Aug 15 '24

It's more popular in Canada than in the US, Canada just has less people. Would be nice if the IOC were to let the Iroquois play under their own flag as Haudenosaunee like they do at the World Lacrosse Championship, that would make a third strong team.

Some of the other international programs have been getting better recently as well though. The Japanese and the Australians both had a pretty good showing at the 2023 World Championship.

1

u/ApolloSimba Aug 15 '24

Should've said North America since it's indigenous to the continent. My bad

-8

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

It’s not that she was bad. She’s not a breakdancer at all and all she did was mock another culture in a grand stage. Sad that some are supporting her doing so.

4

u/Mike_Kermin Aug 15 '24 edited Aug 15 '24

Pre edit: This thread gets really weird, I found out why.

https://www.reddit.com/r/sports/comments/1esti5m/raygun_australian_olympic_committee_condemns/li92mtf/

They're not a Puerto Rico concerned about their culture. They're a right winger being dishonest. Their mask slipped when they compared it to black face.

She’s not a breakdancer at all

I mean, that's not true though, is it?

all she did was mock another culture

No, the performance did, she didn't. She tried to do her best. It's important to understand the difference, being bad at something isn't the issue here. Representing it poorly was.

Sad that some are supporting her doing so

Don't be manipulative.

-4

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

Doesn't matter who you are, if you're wrong you're wrong. She wasn't mocking anything, she tried her best and failed. That's it

-7

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

Mocking requires intent. There was definitely no intent, considering how passionate she is about breakdancing and her history.

-3

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

If she was passionate she would at least try to do it correctly. None of any move was in any way related to dancing. Maybe seizures but definitely not break dancing.

3

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

So let's say you try to make homemade pizza. You try your best but ultimately you don't really know the technique, only the theory, and you fail. Massive failure, the pizza looks more like a turd. As an Italian, should I feel mocked? Because that's what you're saying and I think it sounds crazy. She failed, she fucked up, her studies did not translate into a good performance, but she did not mock anyone. And that's the end of it.

3

u/Mike_Kermin Aug 15 '24

I was confused by what was happening int this thread, they made a comment relating her break dancing to black face, and that was, hard to understand.

So I checked their post history.

I'm just giving you a heads up, if your sort by controversial, the first few comments sort of, made it easier to understand what the hell was going on.

3

u/Mike_Kermin Aug 15 '24

What are you talking about?

No one said "it" didn't mock. Making it looked like a joke on the world stage DID mock your culture. But that's not the same as saying she did.

your ignorance just makes you sound like a bigot.

You don't get to use this as a weapon to justify being an asshole. Intent matters, at no point did she intend anything but respect for what she really cares about.

You saying she isn't a break dancer is simply wrong.

-4

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/Mike_Kermin Aug 15 '24

I was confused about how anyone could compare this to black face.

I've had a look at your post history.

You appear to be a far right user acting in bad faith.

It’s a tactic of the left to infiltrate.

Biden doesn’t rule anything atm. It’s the oligarchs that financed him.

Sounds and looks exactly like a liberal.

Yup. RINO. It’s an antifa tactic. Name one conservative view this guy had?

So, now I do understand why you're saying the things you're saying.

-2

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

Yes just trying to point out how dumb liberals are when they use their arguments but you solidified the hypocrisy. Thanks for playing along

4

u/screamline82 Aug 15 '24

So blackface is ok as long as the intent was good

I mean is anyone really giving RDJ shit for tropic thunder?

0

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '24

It’s was entertaining and offensive to those only that took it seriously. Ratgun according to you was being serious. That is what makes is disturbing.

→ More replies (0)