- Title: PERSONAL: German B-girls excited about Olympic breaking debut
- Date: 3rd May 2024
- Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (FILE - MARCH 26, 2024) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) BREAKING ATHLETE AND CANDIDATE FOR THE SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES IN PARIS, JILOU, SAYING: "My personal journey was full of barriers. When I started breaking, I was told that B-girls should learn first footwork, and once you mastered the footwork, the steps on the floor, that's when you do the power moves. W
- Embargoed: 17th May 2024 10:30
- Keywords: b-girls breaking olympics paris qualifier
- Location: Cologne, Berlin, Munich, GERMANY
- City: Cologne, Berlin, Munich, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Europe,Olympics,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA004959702052024RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: When sporting history is written in Paris this summer, Jilou and Pauline are determined to be part of the experience.
For the first time there will be competitions in breaking at the 2024 Summer Olympics, and the two women known as B-girls, have a chance of representing Germany in the discipline.
"It's a great platform for us to represent our passion, our sport, what we do and motivate people to maybe even start breaking. On the other hand, I think it's super important that me as an ambassador, as an athlete of my sports, that I represent my culture the way it's supposed to be, that it's not about winning the big trophies," Jilou explains.
The 31-year-old B-girl grew up in Cologne and today lives in Berlin. Taking part in the Olympics would be a childhood dream come true for her, which seemed out of reach when she started breaking at the age of 13.
Her personal journey wasn't always an easy one, she remembers. "When I started breaking, I was told that B-girls should learn footwork first, and once you mastered the footwork, the steps on the floor, that's when you do the power moves," she says. "Then I was told that, oh, you're a girl. You should rather do hip-hop than breaking it because breaking is too hard. Luckily, I had a crew who always supported me."
For Jilou and Pauline, breaking is a way of life and exchange with people. Both athletes believe it is essential to preserve the spirit of the subculture, which has its roots in 1970s hip-hop in the New York Bronx. At the Olympics in Paris, instead of competing with crews, the breakers will be competing solo. They improvise their power moves and freezes to the music of DJs.
"The Olympics need us," believes Jilou. "For us, the Olympics is a platform to showcase our passion and of course we are getting more opportunities. But at the same time, the Olympics also need a greater audience. And we represent an audience that is very diverse, that comes from different social standards, different social societies."
31-year-old Pauline Nettesheim sees the Olympics as a big adventure. "It's a nice feeling, actually. In the beginning, it was a little bit to get used to because suddenly you have a have a flag on on your arm, and you represent a team instead of your city or your crew. But being part of, of Team Germany as a whole with all the other athlete makes, yeah. It feels like like a big family. I like it."
It probably will be her only chance to take part in the tournament as the next Olympics 2028 in Los Angeles won't include breaking as as discipline anymore. Pauline, born near the southwestern city of Koblenz and now living in the Netherlands, started breaking more than 20 years ago and today travels to Munich for her Olympic breaking training programme.
Both B-girls consider the respect for breaking to have increased enormously. The opportunities for women in particular have changed, says Jilou. Although B-boys still get more attention from the media and sponsors, the Olympics offer women the same platform as men. For the first time, the International Olympic Committee has allocated the quota places in Paris 50:50 to female and male athletes. A total of 16 B-Boys and 16 B-Girls will be showing their skills in Paris.
Whether Jilou and Pauline will be among them will be decided at the Olympic Qualifier Series, which will take place from May 16 to 19 in Shanghai and from June 20 to 23 June in Budapest. There are still 40 B-Boys and 40 B-Girls in the running.
Both candidates will be competing with plenty of experience. Jilou is a two-time German champion (2023 and 2021) and has won World Championship bronze twice. Pauline won the German silver medal in 2023.
(Production: Petra Wischgoll, Martin Schlicht, Ayhan Uyanik, Christine Uyanik, Alex Mleczko, Swantje Stein) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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