Raygun v Chatfield: Abbie weighs in as Gunn deals with 'devastating' haters

But outspoken social media star Abbie Chatfield has poured fuel on the "Raygun" - Gunn's b-girl name - fire engulfing Australia's post-Olympic conversation, describing the breaker as "embarrassing".

Gunn has divided the country after she became the first Australian breaker to compete at an Olympic Games last weekend.

She has been a viral sensation for her unconventional moves, earning worldwide notoriety via memes and copycat videos on social media and US television shows.

It has somehow dominated the fallout of Australia's most successful campaign in Olympic history, and trolls have lined up to take their shots.

A change.org petition gathered more than 45,000 signatures in an attempt to make Gunn and Australia chef de mission Anna Meares "accountable" for what the petition described as unethical conduct in Olympic selection.

The petition has been removed after Gunn and the Australian Olympic Committee hit back at critics.

Chatfield, a former reality television contestant turned podcaster who always speaks her mind, didn't hold back when asked to weigh into the "Raygun" debate as she prepares for a regional tour, including a stop in Canberra on October 18.

Chatfield said her personal view on Gunn and the storm that has followed was "very negative".

"I don't think she should have competed and it feels all a bit embarrassing," Chatfield told The Canberra Times.

"I don't find it funny at all."

Chatfield added that while she was unimpressed with Gunn, "whatever [Gunn] wants to do, that's fine."

The Australian Olympic Committee slammed the "vexatious, misleading, bullying" change.org petition, throwing its support behind Gunn and Meares.

Speaking for the first time since the storm erupted, Gunn said she had hoped to bring "joy" to people's lives.

"I just want to start by thanking all the people who have supported me," Gunn said.

"I really appreciate the positivity and I'm glad I was able to bring some joy into your lives. That's what I hoped [to do].

"I didn't realise that would open the door to so much hate, which is frankly been pretty devastating.

"I went out there and I had fun, I did take it very seriously. I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics and I gave my all. Truly.

"I'm honoured to be a part of the Australian Olympic team and to be part of breaking's Olympic debut. What the other athletes have achieved has just been phenomenal."

Gunn - a 36-year-old university professor from Sydney - said she was on a pre-planned holiday in Europe and asked the media to stop "harassing" her family.

"In regards to the allegations and misinformation floating around, I'd like to ask everyone to please refer to the recent statement made by the AOC," Gunn said.

"... I'd really like to ask the press to please stop harassing my family, my friends, the Australian breaking community and the broader street-dance community. Everyone has been through a lot."

The Australian Olympic Committee has slammed a "vexatious, misleading and bullying" online petition that targets viral breaking competitor Rachael Gunn.

Gunn has been a viral sensation after her performance at the Paris Olympics, but some of the reaction has been brutal personal attacks.

"In regards to the allegations and misinformation floating around, I'd like to ask everyone to please refer to the recent statement made by the AOC," Gunn said.

"... I'd really like to ask the press to please stop harassing my family, my friends, the Australian breaking community and the broader street-dance community. Everyone has been through a lot."

The vitriol and continued infatuation with Gunn prompted the AOC to publish a statement on Thursday afternoon to clarify the qualification process and call for change.org to remove a petition.

The petition, which was published three days ago, is titled: "Hold Raygun Rachel (sic) Gunn & Anna Mears (sic) accountable for unethical conduct Olympic selection".

It has gathered 45,197 signatures and also turned the spotlight on Olympic legend Anna Meares, who was the Australian team chef de mission in Paris.

AOC boss Matt Carroll said the petition was false and "designed to engender hatred" towards Gunn.

"The AOC is particularly offended by the affront to our chef de mission, Anna Meares," Carroll said.

"The Australian team chef de mission played no role in the qualification events nor the nomination of athletes to the AOC Selection Committee, of which the chef and I are members.

"It is disgraceful that these falsehoods concocted by an anonymous person can be published in this way. It amounts to bullying and harassment and is defamatory. We are demanding that it be removed from the site immediately.

"The petition has stirred up public hatred without any factual basis. It's appalling. No athlete who has represented their country at the Olympic Games should be treated in this way and we are supporting Dr Gunn and Anna Meares at this time.

"It's important that the community understands the facts and that people do not form opinions based on malicious untruths and misinformation."

The AOC statement went on to say:

- The Oceania qualifying event in Sydney last year was conducted under the Olympic qualification system;

- The judging panel for the event was selected by the World DanceSport Federation, and included nine independent international judges;

- Gunn holds no position with AusBreaking or DanceSport Australia.

Gunn has sparked an online craze since last weekend, with memes and videos and mashups kangaroo-mimicking performance, during which she scored no votes from any of the judges.

Breaking made its Olympic debut in Paris, but won't be included in the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

There has been widespread reaction to her performance, but her Australian teammates rallied around her before the closing ceremony earlier this week and she gave an impromptu performance in front of other athletes.

The breaking community around Australia has been watching closely, and some want people to know there's more to the sport than jokes about Raygun, Australia's first competitor in the Olympics.

While the dancing style might look odd to an outsider, the kids dancing at Kulture Break in southern Canberra say breaking takes a lot of hard work and perseverance.

Eight-year-old Edie Minehan wants to represent Australia at the Games just like Raygun did.

"She's my hero," she said. "When I was little, I used to love watching her dance in competitions and she brings the break and the fun in break dancing for me."

Break dancing, or breaking, made a memorable debut in the Paris Olympics, with the internet rioting over the performance of Australia's own Rachael Gunn, better known as her stage name Raygun.

The 36-year-old from Sydney, who has a day job as a lecturer at Macquarie University, has been ridiculed for her breaking routine, which featured a move similar to the hopping of a kangaroo.

Social media users blasted the dancer for her moves, with one user commenting that the performance was the "definition of 'when you lie on your resume and end up getting the job'" and Australia should have sent kangaroos to compete in breaking instead.

"Thank you for setting the bar so low and make me think that I can be an Olympic athlete as well," one user said.

Many asked why breaking was included in the Games at all, with the criticism so severe that one ACT dance studio told The Canberra Times they would not be able to respond to any comments about Olympic breakers.

Canberra breaker b-girl Fizzy said she's been dismayed at the backlash against Raygun's performance.

She faced off against Raygun at the qualifying championships, and said the Olympian deserved to go through.

"Raygun obviously has a very unique and original style, and that's actually an essential element in breaking," she said.

"She took that in her own way on that stage."

Raygun hit back at critics as well, telling fans on Instagram not to be scared of being themselves.

"Don't be afraid to be different, go out there and represent yourself, you never know where that's gonna take you," she said.

Breaking emerged out of hip hop culture in the United States in the 1970s. According to the Australian Olympic Committee, the dance style is characterised by acrobatic movements, stylised footwork and the key role played by the DJ and the master of ceremonies (MC) during battles.

The sport was dropped from the schedule for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics before it had even began in Paris.

Archer Geier, 13, who dances in Canberra said the Olympics showed how diverse every breaker is.

"It was cool seeing how people from all over the world do different styles of break dance, but it's all still the same thing. They're all expressing themselves," he said.

More than 320,000 people in Australia dance every week, making up about 1.6 per cent of the national population.

While there is no specific data on breakdancing in the ACT, around 3240 Canberrans are involved with Dance Sport, which includes breaking, according to statistics from the Australian Sports Commission.

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The future is bright for Canberra's young breakers, according to Fizzy.

"Breaking is part of a bigger culture, it's being part of a community, a dance style, an art form, and they'll have that for the rest of their lives," she said.

"Looking really cool while doing some great moves is also a plus."