Breaking holds firm to roots as it readies for Paris Games

NEW YORK • Breakdancing is ready to embrace the Olympic spotlight with its Games debut less than two years away, as the pillar of hip-hop culture returned to its roots in New York this weekend.

The Netherlands’ India Sardjoe and Victor Montalvo of the United States were crowned the Red Bull BC One World Final champions on Saturday in a celebration of breaking — as participants prefer to call it — in its New York home, as competitors turn their focus toward Olympic qualifying in 2023.

Paris will mark the culmination of breaking’s long journey from hip-hop’s birthplace at a rec room party in the Bronx 49 years ago to an international phenomenon on sport’s biggest stage.

South Korea’s Jeon Ji-ye, known onstage as Freshbella, told Reuters via a translator that she pored over footage of hip-hop’s early years, becoming a scholar of breaking’s humble roots even as she embraces the Olympic platform.

“I just love the breaking culture itself, but honestly when it comes to persuading others to really join into the breaking scene, I still don’t really have a concrete answer,” she said. “I’m of course looking forward to participating in the Paris Olympics.”

Amir Zakirov, one of the world’s top B-boys, said the Olympic stage offers the chance to show the rest of the world how breaking has flourished in his native Kazakhstan.

“I have plans to win it, of course,” he said. “Because I want to show my breaking for a new generation ... we have a real special scene of breaking in my country.”

Breaking’s inclusion in the Paris Games prompted soul searching among dancers and early pioneers, who questioned whether the art form with deep cultural significance should even be called a sport, when organizers announced it had been added to the Olympics.

In the days leading up to the Red Bull BC One World Final, the company that founded the event made efforts to emphasize breaking’s history, piling reporters and enthusiasts onto a hiphop history tour through the Bronx.