The long-awaited dance shone into the global spotlight like never before as breakdancing made its Olympic debut over the weekend. On the amphitheatre-style stage of Place de la Concorde in Paris, 32 dancers from all over the world (16 hip-hop boys and 16 hip-hop girls) competed to see who would become the first dancer in history to compete in the Olympics. who. Here are highlights from an intense game day on Friday and Saturday.
environment
Even watching at home, the excitement and energy on the Place de la Concorde was electric. The stands were packed with thousands of spectators, many of them vandals themselves, cheering from their seats and cheering on the players.
Music is the backbone of every good fight, and in this regard, the Olympics play a role. Two renowned rock disc jockeys – New York’s DJ Fleg and Poland’s DJ Plash – take to the decks to flip and spin iconic tracks from the likes of James Brown, Busta Rhymes and A Tribe Called Quest. Presenters, another important element of hip-hop culture, also rose to the challenge: France’s Malik Moujouil (“Maleek”) and Portugal’s Max Oliveira kept the energy of the audience and contestants high throughout the two 10-hour competition days.
Although one of NBC’s announcers, Blythe Lawrence, comes from outside the wrestling world (gymnastics, to be exact), most of the commentary comes from insiders: wrestlers Candy Bloise, Ronnie Abaldonado and David “Kid” “Shreibman. While those familiar with Break may appreciate more nuances in their performance, overall they do a good job of explaining the basics of the sport and paying homage to its hip-hop roots.
Scoring
Much of the controversy surrounding breaking as an Olympic sport has to do with scoring. Organizers were tasked with developing a system suitable for Olympic competition while still respecting the history of breaking as a freestyle format.
The Games ended with nine judges using DJ faders to rate each batter’s opponents on technique, vocabulary, execution, musicality and originality. Despite all the uncertainty, the system appears to be working well. The outcome of any round was not contested. Refreshingly, the judges – respected disruptors from around the world – put as much emphasis on essentials and performance quality as flashy tricks. For example, while French veteran break Dany Dann’s physical prowess wasn’t necessarily on par with Australian newcomer J. Attack, Dann ultimately won both rounds of judges’ votes with his musicality and personality.
competitors
Even though Break was born in the Bronx, Team USA’s performance in these games wasn’t the best. After the 24-round round robin, two American B-girls, Sunny Choi and Logan “Logistx” Edra, were eliminated. Jeffrey “Jeffro” Louis and Victor Montalvo advanced to the semifinals, with Montalvo making it all the way to the bronze medal match, where he defeated Japan’s Shigeyuki Nakai (Shigeyuki “Shigekix” Nakarai).
As of Sunday night, Canada’s Phillip “Phil Wizard” Kim and Japan’s Ami Yuasa were crowned Olympic b-boy and b-girl champions, respectively. (You can find the full list of winners here.) Although only a handful of Vandals made it to the final podium, there were many great moments of sportsmanship among the contestants, showcasing the tight-knit nature of the global vandalism community Contact and support.
