Breaking debut in Olympics raises question: Are breakers artists or athletes?

PARIS — Sport as an expression of art seems like an abstract concept. But take a well-designed goal in soccer or hockey, for example – the angles involved, the creativity required. Suddenly, the two opposites are bridged.  

After all, sport, like art, is entertainment. And the newest Olympic sport, breaking, is an ideal example of how two forms of expression, dancing and athletics, are not as dichotomous as people may think. 

USA TODAY Sports asked the U.S. Olympic breakers, along with those who have been involved around breaking for decades, whether they saw themselves more as athletes or artists. The easy answer is “both.” The truth lies somewhere along that bridge.  

“How do you blend them?” asked Victor Montalvo, “B-boy Victor,” about art and sport. “I don’t know. I have no problem blending both.” 

Arguably the most important factor judges base their scores on in breaking is creativity. Copying another person’s moves – called “biting” in the breaking world – is sacrilegious. 

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Style is an inherent part of breaking, from the way one comports him or herself before and after battling to the competitor’s wardrobe. 

“The culture aspect of breaking, it’s always to me, it’s always about style and originality first,” said Jeffrey Louis, B-boy Jeffro, of Team USA. “Even in a sports sense, I still have to have my own style and originality.” 

For Sunny Choi, aka B-girl Sunny, “there’s no doubt in my mind this is a sport.” 

But that’s not all. 

“Dance, art, sport – all together,” she said. 

The original breakers, the “OGs” as they are called, sometimes look down on the current generation of breakers for stretching, Montalvo said. He feels that breaking has emerged from the “culture side” of society and into the sports section. 

“We're learning a lot, and we're training more like athletes,” he said. 

Some of the knowledge they have gained since becoming Olympians has ranged from nutrition to strength and conditioning and mental health. Going under the umbrella of Team USA has been helpful. 

“Because a couple years ago, maybe five, 10 years ago, we weren't on that,” he said. “So we were our own nutritionist. We were our own strength and conditioning coaches. And we didn't know what we were doing. So now that we get those resources, it's really helpful.” 

Breaking battles at the Olympic level can last from 30 seconds to a minute, depending on the track and the competitor’s moves. Each Olympian will go at least six rounds in the round-robin first part of the tournament. Then it moves into a best-of-three knockout setup. 

Performing dynamic movements for that long requires a professional level of physical fitness, Louis said. At the same time, breakers are creating. 

“This is hip-hop,” he said. “You have to have your own style. You have to have your own flavor. How do you do that? By being artistic.” 

For London Reyes, a member of the New York City Breakers during the 1980s, breaking culture reminds him of basketball culture – and the former Nike entertainment executive within the basketball division would know. 

“Why can't breaking be a sport and a culture as well?” Reyes asked. “So that's what it is. It could be two things at once – you can walk and chew gum at the same time.” 

The physical element is why the Olympics deemed it worthy of inclusion in Paris, even if it was left off the 2028 Los Angeles Games program. “You have to eat well, you have to train, you have to stretch, you have to take care of your body,” Reyes said. “You have to be strong mentally, physically, spiritually. 

“Everything is about the competition, and it's no different than the dance, and that's the beauty of it.” 

How far breaking has come physically, artistically 

Where can breaking go from a technical standpoint in the next 20 years? Reyes isn't sure.

“They would have to fly, I guess,” he said. 

In all seriousness, he thinks the ability to perform all moves both clockwise and counterclockwise will be essential. He can also see a difficulty system similar to gymnastics being ingrained in the judging.  

Back in the day, Reyes said, when the “OGs” did head spins, they were just called “one-shots” or “pencils" because they only did one rotation. Now the head spins are “continuous.”   

“Now they bring their legs in, they bring them out, they go reach over, they grab their leg,” Reyes said. “It's just different variations of it. It's just incredible, what they do today.” 

The same thing applies to footwork. What started as simple steps is done with speed, agility and flexibility in the present day. 

“So they just keep elevating and keep just doing different creative things out of it,” Reyes said. 

And for anybody who says it’s not a sport? 

“I would tell them, 'Try to do a tenth of what we do.’ That’s what I would say,” Louis said. “And you would see how much athleticism, how much creativity, artistry, style, that goes into it.”