even though it takes several hours of practice a day to master it at the highest level, just like breakdancing.
Breaking doesn't take several hours a day. It takes years to reach the level of achievement seen at the Olympics. It has deep cultural roots and an etiquette. The etiquette is as important to the culture as the skill.
The symbolic 'battles' are serious. They are ritual. The 'winners' are highly respected and emulated. The 'moves' in the best breakers seen at the Olympics rival the moves of gymnasts. The dancers fly through the air and defy gravity.
I think the dance is disparaged because of the culture from which it derives. The hand movements. The clothes. The gestures. I think these are off-putting to mainstream observers.
Do breakers belong in the Olympics? I don't know. But it really is disrespectful for a breaker to show up and do what Raygun did. She represented a community, and she did not represent it well. Plus, she took a spot from a serious breaker.
(I got all this from a member of the breaking community who years ago achieved some success in the field.)
I meant several hours a day for several years!
Fair comment, it is widely misunderstood I know, interesting mis-match with the Olympics all around I think.
Maybe that was her point: breaking doesn't belong here, thus you have no grounds to be upset.
Although if that was her argument it's gonna be hard for her to make it unless she made it before consistently.
Hi,
Personally, I think if there is room for boxing in the Olympics, there is room for break dancing.
If that was her point, then it is appropriate that she be resoundingly rejected by the community. Parody is never the best argument against anything. And, I know breakers personally. You can't find a more dedicated group of people. It is an art form, with a 'vocabulary'. There are set moves, as in ballet, and, as I said earlier, an etiquette. I think that's what I respect even more about the art than the skill. There is a mutual respect among dancers. It's a powerful tie and a powerful check on behavior.
Raygun is an embarrassment more to herself than to the art.
It's great to see the subject entertained here rationally, and without judgement.
Hey cheers, whatever the motives, at least it was entertaining!