Now breakdancing’s an Olympic sport!
BREAKDANCING will be an official Olympic sport for the first time at the 2024 Paris Games – while squash has again been denied entry.
Tournament chiefs admit the decision to include the urban dance style aims to extend the event’s appeal to the young.
Officially known as breaking, it is linked to hip hop music and emerged from the South Bronx in New York in the 1970s. It is characterised by spinning movements, often with the hands or head being in contact with the ground instead of the feet.
Participants, called b-boys or b-girls, will compete for Olympic glory with moves such as ‘freezes’ and ‘toprocks’.
Breakdance’s inclusion was announced by the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland.
President Thomas Bach said: ‘We had a clear priority to introduce sports that are particularly popular among the younger generation and taking into consideration the urbanisation of sport.’
But squash has been overlooked again after already being snubbed for London 2012, Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, now taking place next year after being delayed by the pandemic.
Britain’s former world number one squash player Nick Matthew last year criticised his sport’s omission, saying: ‘Sports are being pulled from left field now.’
It was ‘frustrating’ that squash players were being ‘denied a chance of a gold medal’, he added. Surfing, skateboarding and climbing will also feature at Paris after debuts at next year’s delayed Tokyo Games.
Shawn Tay, president of the World Dance Sport Federation, said it ‘could not be prouder’ at the breakdancing news.
He added: ‘Today is a historic occasion not only for b-boys and b-girls but for all dancers around the world.
‘It was a true team effort to get to this moment and we will redouble our efforts in the lead-up to the Olympic Games to make sure the breaking competition at Paris 2024 will be unforgettable.’
Breakdancing was first showcased at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Argentina.
Mr Bach also said that the number of athletes at Paris has been set at 10,500, down 600 on the limit set for Tokyo.
‘Popular among the younger generation’