By Martin Quin Pollard
HANGZHOU, China (Reuters) – The funky beats, fast feet and head spinning moves of breakdancing made their debut at the Asian Games in the Eastern city of Hangzhou on Friday less than a year before the sport enters the Olympic programme for the first time at Paris 2024.
Under bright lights and ear-splitting, subwoofer hungry mixes more akin to a nightclub or indoor hip-hop concert the “b-boy” and “b-girl” dancers performed their tricks in a circle on a stage in front of judges and several thousand spectators.
Sporting baggy pants and beanie hats and using stage names including “Think”, “K” and “Quake”, the dancers span and shimmied on their heads, shoulders and hands in performances familiar to tourists in city squares across the world.
This time the prize was not a wad of notes in a hat but a gold medal and exposure to millions.
“It’s very special,” said one of Taiwan’s female breakers, 25-year-old Yang Jia-li, who added that breaking had massively boosted her confidence.
“A lot of friends are asking when I will perform or asking about the Olympics. I am also very happy that people in different fields care about breaking.”
Along with esports’ debut as a medal event in Hangzhou, organisers hope “breaking” can help lure young viewers turned off by traditional Games sports.
A counter-cultural art-form born in the streets of New York City decades ago, breakdancing is judged against broad criteria in competition.
“Now it has become a sport, its culture is becoming less and less because after all we have to cooperate with some sports norms,” said Yang’s 24-year-old male team mate Sun Zhen.
JUDGING AN “ART”
DJs played clips for the breakers from a “mix cut” of around 200 songs prepared for the Games which the dancers did not know in advance, said technical operation director of the competition, Meng Changqing.
The contestants then had to react quickly to “feel” the music as they entered the circle to perform their moves.
Judges give contestants marks out of 20 in five categories: skill, musicality, diversity, completion and quality and personality, for a total score out of 100, Meng added
The dancers were widely very positive about the experience and its potential to encourage others to take up breaking.
But several expressed concern about the judging, not least because the action comes thick and fast with dancers sometimes exchanging places in the circle several times within each round.
“We have so many elements in the breaking, so many elements, rhythm skills, basic foundation, so many things, also creativity,” said Kim Heon-woo, 36, from South Korea, who is aiming for gold on Saturday and to qualify for Paris.
“So it’s very, very hard to judge who wins, who loses, right? This is what we worry about.
“But before the Olympics we’ve been doing competitions even in our (underground breaking) culture. So, to me, I think it’s getting better and better, the judging system.”
Kim, who began breaking in 1999 after his brother started doing it, said that competitions like these mean he has to train more on his strength and fitness.
That’s because the contests are mostly one v one dance-off “battles” unlike the traditional breaking contests which are fought between “crews” and involve several rounds often in quick succession.
Asked if he sees himself as an athlete or just a b-boy, he said: “From this year (I’m an) athlete. I’m both yeah. But for me, honestly, I’m more an artist. But, of course, I respect athletes.
“I’m getting used to it and I’m getting used to these sport rules. Actually, I’m from the original, the culture in the hip hop. Of course I prefer more the (original) culture (and that type of) system, but yeah, there is no choice. I have to run in this system (to compete here).”
Kim’s rival Sun, who took up breaking aged 11 after seeing neighbours doing it on the street near his home, said he too senses some constraints on his favourite “art”.
“Yes to a certain extent, but I think this is a very sweet constraint for us,” said Sun, who uses the stage name “Quake”.
“We have an opportunity thanks to the Asian Games, but we have to cooperate with them because, after all, they are a bigger brand. So we have to make this sacrifice.
“I think what worries me is that when everyone’s pursuit of winning is too focused on the techniques then we will gradually stop caring about your musicality, your originality.”
(Additional reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Ken Ferris)
