‘Raygun’ the 36-year-old Australian breakdancing professor is our Olympic hero

Friday marked the Olympic debut of “breaking” with the women’s b-girl competition. The field was stacked with teenage phenoms, world champions, breakdancing pioneers getting to show their craft on the world stage — and also Raygun, a 36-year-old Australian professor who was just there to get funky.

In a sport dominated by baggy pants, Kangols and dripping with style, Raygun went an entirely different direction, wearing the patently uncool Australian Olympic sweatsuit, complete with a matching ball cap.

There were jokes, obviously there were jokes. Raygun was a such a fish out of water in the competition there were times when she didn’t even look like she belonged.

But here’s the thing: Raygun is actually cool as hell. While there’s no question she didn’t have the skills of some of the younger, dominant B-Girls in the competition, she is a damn icon in breakdancing. A professor at the prestigious Macquarie University in Sydney, Rachael Gunn is one of the biggest advocates for breaking Down Under. Gunn researches the “cultural politics of breaking,” while instructing students in the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Language and Literature.

Not only that, but she’s a dance teacher to instruct the next generation of B-Girls, while also working on community outreach with local governments to allow more urban dance spaces in cities to allow spaces for breaking to thrive.

Raygun manages to do all this, while becoming an Olympic athlete in the sport she loves. Like all breakers she’s pushing for the legitimacy of breaking in a sport-crazed Australia, and part of this means dressing like other Olympic athletes, and not focusing on her personal style — and make no mistake, she has STYLE.

For Raygun it wasn’t just about trying to win a medal, but make a statement about the sport back home. Rachael Gunn is an absolute legend.