Breakdancing Proposed For Paris 2024 Olympics

From straight outta the Bronx to the pinnacle of world sport, breakdancing could be about to become an Olympic discipline.

Emerging from New York in the late 1960s as the movement for hip hop beats, breakdancing soon blossomed into a worldwide trend.

Now organisers of the 2024 Olympic Games in the French capital want it on their roster along with track and field perennials such as the 100 metres and the high jump.

Administrators at the International Olympic Committee, which attributes the games to different cities, will decide in December 2020 if breakdancing's b-boys and b-girls can rank alongside the hurdlers, sprinters and swimmers.

"We want things in the Olympic Games that will attract young people," said Tony Estanguet, the head of the Paris 2024 organising committee.

"Breakdancing is something which is all about creativity and athletic performance."

The former Olympic canoeing champion said that sites in France in 2024 would also feature, surfing, skateboarding and sport climbing which will make their debut at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

"Those three along with breakdancing have communities which are active on social media and with an Olympic profile over the next five years they're bound to inspire millions of young people into getting up and doing some sport."

Breakdancing featured in the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018 and in the 2024 senior version an event is proposed for 16 b-boys and 16 b-girls.

Two contestants will face off in a "battle" of several rounds involving dancing on the floor or upright. The judges will give scores on the technical and creative merits of each dancer.

"Skateboarding, breakdancing, sport climbing – we're ready to give them all a showcase," tweeted Stéphane Troussel, the head of the Seine-Saint-Denis regional authority which will house several Olympic venues including the track and field events at the Stade de France.