*Breakdancing, which originated in the Bronx during the 1970s among African-American youth, grew alongside the rise of hip-hop culture. The dance style gained national and international attention in the 1970s and 1980s.
By 1990, breaking had become a global phenomenon with international competitions. Three years ago, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that breaking would be an official Olympic sport, following successful trials at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires.
On August 9-10, the top breakdancers from over a dozen countries will compete at the Paris Olympics. Athletes from China, France, Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Ukraine, and the United States, will compete for gold in breaking. A total of 33 dancers (16 B-Boys, 16 B-Girls, and one reserve) will face off in round-robin preliminaries, followed by elimination rounds including the quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal battles, Sporting New reports.
In the round-robin stage, breakers are divided into four groups and paired for one-on-one battles, each featuring a best-of-three contest. The top two dancers from each group will advance to the quarterfinals, where they will continue competing in knockout battles to reach the semifinals and medal rounds.
Per THR, judges will evaluate the breakers based on creativity, execution, technique, originality, vocabulary, musicality, and complexity.
The women’s breaking competition is scheduled for August 9, and the men’s competition will take place on August 10. Both events will be available for streaming on Peacock and broadcast on NBC, E!, Telemundo, and Universo.
Peacock is the official streamer of the Olympics. Cable subscribers can watch events airing using DirecTV Stream, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Sling, and also by logging into NBC.com, NBCOlympics.com, NBCSports.com, or the NBC Sports app with their TV provider credentials.
If you don’t have cable, you can still watch the breakdancing events for free by signing up for live TV streaming services that offer free trials and include E! or NBC. DIRECTV Stream is a good option, offering a five-day free trial.
Below is a breakdown of the schedule for the first-ever breaking events at the 2024 Olympics (via New York Post).
Friday, August 9
- B-Girls Round Robin
- Live on Peacock and E! at 10:00 a.m. ET
- B-Girls Quarterfinals
- Live on Peacock and E! at 2:00 p.m. ET
- B-Girls Semifinals
- Live on Peacock and E! at 2:47 p.m. ET
- B-Girls Bronze Medal Battle
- Live on Peacock and E! at 3:19 p.m. ET
- B-Girls Gold Medal Battle
- Live on Peacock and E! at 3:29 p.m. ET
Saturday, August 10
- B-Boys Round Robin
- Live on Peacock at 10:00 a.m. ET
- Joined live in progress on E! at 10:30 a.m. ET
- B-Boys Quarterfinals
- Live on Peacock and E! at 2:00 p.m. ET
- B-Boys Semifinals
- Live on Peacock and E! at 2:47 p.m. ET
- B-Boys Bronze Medal Battle
- Live on Peacock and E! at 3:19 p.m. ET
- B-Boys Gold Medal Battle
- Live on Peacock and E! at 3:29 p.m. ET
READ MORE FROM EURWEB.COM: Breakdancing Makes its Debut at the Paris Olympics – A timeline of When Every Olympic Sport was Introduced | VIDEO
