WASHINGTON — Rachael Gunn - the Australian breaking competitor whose performance at the Paris Games became one of the lasting images of the sport's Olympic debut - is speaking out against all the hate she's received.
Gunn, known as b-girl Raygun, has faced a flood of criticism for her routine at the Olympics which included a “kangaroo dance” among other questionable moves.
"I just want to start by thanking all the people who have supported me. I really appreciate the positivity, and I'm glad I was able to bring some joy into your lives. That's what I hoped," Gunn said in the Instagram video, her first time addressing the criticism since competing in Paris.
"I didn't realize that that would also open the door to so much hate, which has frankly been pretty devastating," she said. "While I went out there and I had fun, I did take it very seriously. I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics and I gave my all, truly."
Gunn posted her video a few hours after the head of the Australian Olympic Committee publicly criticized a change.org petition that claimed she had “manipulated” Olympic qualification processes.
Chief executive officer Matt Carroll said the AOC had written to change.org, which had published the petition, demanding that it be immediately withdrawn. He said it “contained numerous falsehoods designed to engender hatred against an athlete who was selected in the Australian Olympic team through a transparent and independent qualification event and nomination process.”
In her video, Gunn said those looking for information about the "allegations and misinformation floating around" about her participation should refer to the AOC's statement.
She also urged the press to stop harassing her friends, family and members of the street dance community.
Gunn added that she'll be remaining in Europe for a few weeks, as part of "pre-planned downtime," but would be happy to answer more questions when she returns to Australia.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
