Breakdancing to be an Olympic sport at 2024 Paris Games

Jong Ho "Leon" Kim of Korea performs as the other B-Boys watch on during a video production prior to this weekend's Red Bull BC One breakdancing world final, on November 11, 2015 in Rome, Ita
(Image credit: Dean Treml/Red Bull via Getty Images)

Some breaking breakdancing news is just in, courtesy of the Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee on Monday announced that breakdancing is set to debut as an Olympic sport in 2024, The Associated Press reports.

The International Olympic Committee revealed breakdancing, which the organization referred to as breaking, was confirmed as a sport for the 2024 Paris Games after being proposed by the Paris 2024 Organising Committee. Skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing were also confirmed. The move to add breakdancing for 2024, AP wrote, fit with the committee's "pursuit of urban events to lure a younger audience" for the Olympics.

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Previously, breakdancing was added for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, and Monday's announcement said this will be "building on the success of the sport" there.

"It was a true team effort to get to this moment and we will redouble our efforts in the lead-up to the Olympic Games to make sure the breaking competition at Paris 2024 will be unforgettable," said Shawn Tay, the president of the World DanceSport Federation, per CNN.

In total, there will be 329 medal events at the 2024 Paris Games, down from 339 in Tokyo next year, and the International Olympic Committee said it's looking to make the 2024 games "fit for a post-corona world." The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to begin in July 2021 following a year delay due to COVID-19. Then, it will be three years later when breakdancing officially breaks in.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.