2023-10-21 21:39:08
Paris (AFP) – “Fasten your seat belts, it’s going to heat up!”: The Philippe Chatrier court at Roland-Garros lit up on Saturday evening for the best breakers on the planet during the Red Bull BC One, the unofficial World Championships of a discipline which will make its big debut at the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Published on: 10/21/2023 – 11:39 p.m.
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A few months before a first Olympic deadline, the famous Parisian tennis stadium was packed for a private event, considered by most enthusiasts as the holy grail of this art of dance originating from hip-hop culture.
Favorite, the Japanese Bgirl (name given to breaking dancers) Ami, already victorious in 2018, dominated the women’s tournament in front of 8,000 delirious spectators. Among the men, it was Korean veteran Bboy Hong10, 38, who won thanks to his explosive style.
After qualifying stages organized throughout the year in the four corners of the world, the final stages began from 6 p.m. on Saturday in the presence of the sixteen best dancers on the planet from each continent.
Respecting the codes of the discipline, the competition took place in the form of direct elimination battles (duels between two dancers), which were decided on a cypher (central stage), surrounded by a large part of the public.
At the end of three passages for each dancer, five judges decided by majority the winner of the confrontation, to the applause of a young audience largely won over by the numerous acrobatic figures proposed on stage throughout the evening.
“Still there”
“The BC One has always had a fiery atmosphere, but since the station wagon is at the Olympics, we have entered a new dimension,” said Léo, 17, from Vitry-sur-Seine (Val -de-Marne) with a group of dancer friends like him.
The competition has been organized since 2004 by the famous drinks company and it has been won by several legends of the discipline such as the French Bboy Lilou or the Russian Bgirl Kastet.
the Japanese Bgirl Ami, winner of the women’s tournament during Red Bull BC One on Saturday at Roland-Garros © Martin LELIEVRE / AFP
“Every year it gets a little bigger and, Olympics or not, the break community will always be there,” assures Aïssa, 23, passionate regarding hip-hop culture since adolescence.
Like karate, integrated into the Tokyo Games in 2021 but excluded for the following ones, breaking will not have Olympic visibility beyond next summer, because it was not selected by the competition committee. organization of the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
The Frenchman Bboy Dany, already qualified for Paris thanks to his victory at the European Games in June, lost in the semi-final once morest the future winner of the tournament.
“He was dancing at home. I knew he was going to have the support of the crowd, but I was ready: I wanted him to go first and then surprise him and it worked,” Hong10 explained following his victory , the 3rd in the tournament following 2006 and 2013.
The two dancers will perhaps have the opportunity to compete once more on August 9 and 10, on the Place de la Concorde, in the hope of winning the first Olympic gold medal for breaking.
© 2023 AFP
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