According to several news sources, breakdancing will be an official sport in the 2024 Olympics, which is set to be held in Paris.
The International Olympic Committee says the Olympic competition will feature 16 b-boy and 16 b-girls from around the world competing in 1-on-1 battles. The top three finalists will of course receive gold, silver, and bronze medals.
World DanceSport Federation president Shawn Tay said of the news, “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.”
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The International Olympic Committee also announced skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing will also be included at the 2024 Games; three sports that were supposed to debut at Tokyo 2020.
Everyone isn’t happy about the news, with Australian squash great Michelle Martin saying that the Olympics will no longer be taken seriously until they accept other “real sports”.
“They either need to go back to what the Olympics was about and let the other sports stay outside of that because the problem is it’s having such an impact on the sports that don’t get into the Olympics now,” says the 53-year-old Martin. “The Olympics has lost what it was. Yes they’re trying to move with the times but it’s creating a mockery of the thing.”