By Canadian Press

Former world champion laments Olympic move away from breaking at 2028 L.A. Games

Oct 13, 2023 | 9:32 AM

Former world champion Philip Kim says the move to drop breaking from the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles is disappointing, especially before the sport debuts at next year’s Paris Games. 

Each host city, under International Olympic Committee rules, can request the inclusion of several sports for its edition of the Games. There is no guarantee they will stick, however.

Surfing, skateboarding and sport climbing debuted in Tokyo in 2021 and remain on the schedule. But it appears breaking, better known as breakdancing, is falling off the Olympic agenda after Paris. 

Organizers of the 2028 Games want cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash and baseball-softball added to the event. 

“It’s disappointing especially because the decision is made prior to seeing the results of breaking in Paris,” Kim said in an interview. “It makes me a bit sad because I do have complete confidence that breaking will blow up in Paris and people will fall in love with it.”

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The new L.A. sports were reviewed by the Olympic Program Commission (OPC) before being put forward to the IOC executive board, which added its approval on Friday in Mumbai, India, leaving one last hurdle to seal their Olympic spots.

The IOC session, which starts Sunday, is expected to rubber-stamp the board’s recommendation.

Kim also noted that the U.S. is the “birthplace of breaking.”

“We’ll just focus in performing well in Paris and showing the world that this is what we do,” he said. “And that’s all we can do.

“And hopefully even though we’re out of L.A. 2028, I know that 2032 Brisbane, from what I’ve heard, they’re still interested in bringing breaking along. So we’ll keep moving forward … And just hope for the best and keep a positive attitude.”

The 26-year-old from Vancouver, known as B-Boy Phil Wizard, won the 2022 WDSF World Breaking Championships in Seoul. He was runner-up to American Victor Montalvo, known as B-boy Victor, at the recent worlds in Leuven, Belgium.

The five proposed news sports would join the 28 sports in the Los Angeles 2028 initial program announced by the IOC in February 2022: aquatics, archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, canoeing, cycling, equestrian, fencing, football (soccer), golf, gymnastics, handball, field hockey, judo, rowing, rugby sevens, sailing, shooting, skateboarding, sport climbing, surfing, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, triathlon, volleyball and wrestling.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 13, 2023

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press