Olympic breaking had its moment. But will we ever see it at the Games again?

Canada won agold medal. Australia became a meme. At times, even the commentators weren't sure what to say.

Love it or LOL it, it's safe to say breaking's debut made its mark at the Paris Olympics, althoughit may never return. Breaking known to many as break dancing is not on the program for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.Yet it's becomeone of the most talked-about events.

Much of the buzz comes courtesy of Vancouver's Philip Kim, a.k.a. Phil Wizard, who captured gold after dominatinghis final battle with host-country favourite Danis Civil (Dany Dann) of France.

But it's also in no small part thanks to the performance of an Australian b-girl known as Raygun who did a "kangaroo dance" and scored zero points but became a viral sensation.

Despitesome misinformation circulating online, the decision not to include breaking in the 2028 Games was made long beforeRaygun'sperformance.

Raygun, whose real name is Rachael Gunn, is a 36-year-old college professor. After her performance on Friday,Gunn posted onInstagram:"Don't be afraid to be different, go out there and represent yourself, you never know where that's gonna take you."

The comments on her post were largely unsupportive.

"I know a lot of people will discourage you but please listen to them," wroteInstagram user "preacherz_son," ina comment with 30,000 likes.

She defended her moves again on Saturday, tellingthe Independent that she tried to be "new, different and creative" because she couldn't compete athletically with her younger rivals.

On Sunday,the head judge of the breaking competition said Gunn was just trying to be original.

"Breaking is all about originality and bringing something new to the table and representing your country or region," head judge Martin Gilian known as MGbility said at a newsconference. "This is exactly what Raygun was doing. She got inspired by her surroundings, which in this case, for example, was a kangaroo."

WATCH | Phil Wizard wins gold:

Phil 'Wizard' Kim popped and locked his way to a historic gold medal in Paris

22 days ago

Duration 0:46

Phil 'Wizard' Kim used his unique skills to his advantage in the B-Boys Breaking Final, earning himself a historic gold medal in Paris.

So, breaking isn't coming back?

Breakingwas added to the program for Paris 2024 in an effort to attract a younger and more diverse fanbase to the Olympics.It made its debut under a rule that allows local organizers to choose a limited number of additional sports.

But it's not on the roster for the 2028 Olympics inL.A. a decision that was made long before the competition. The International Olympic Committee announced lastOctoberthat it had approved L.A.'s proposal for five additional sports: baseball/softball, cricket (T20), flag football, lacrosse (sixes) and squash.

At the time,IOCpresident Thomas Bach said these sportsare "in line with the American sports culture."

ButasJapan's Ami Yuasapoints out, breaking originatedin the United Statesduring the mid-1970s in the Bronx borough of New York City, according to theWorld DanceSport Federation.

Yuasa, known as b-girl Ami, won the gold medal for the women and said she wished Los Angeles organizers had waited to experience the energy between the athletes and the crowd at Place de la Concorde in Paris.

"I feel so sad about it not happening in Los Angeles, because breaking was born in the U.S.A.," she told The Associated Press on Sunday. "Breaking is not just a sport, it's also expressing myself and art."

At a news conference on Sunday, Vancouver's Kim pointed out that breaking reallyshowcased the "energy and atmosphere" it brings to the Olympics.

"I mean, it's similar with skateboarding, BMX and a lot of these other kind of more urban sports," he said. "Yes, coming into it, we see ourselves as a dance and art and a culture. But I think a lot of these things are just labels."

What about the 2032 Olympics?

World DanceSport Federation president ShawnTaytold a news conference on Sunday that it's too bad L.A. didn't get to see the buzz about breaking in Paris before making its decision.

"You can see the last two days it was really exciting and almost mind blowing for those watching it," Taysaid. "It's not just about physical performance. It's also about the enjoyment in sports that the audience can link with what they hear and they can see it. And so they get a lot of audience involvement in the last two days."

It's possible that breaking could return for the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane, Australia,butZack Slusser, vice-president of Breaking for Gold USA and USA Dance, told reporters he thinks it's unlikely. "It was a miracle that we were even in Paris to begin with," he told NBC.

WATCH | PhilWizard's parents welcome him home:

Phil Wizard's family reunites with him after watching him perform for the first time

21 days ago

Duration 2:34

Phil Wizard's family expresses their love and excitement about his gold medal and performance.

SergeiNifontov, general secretary of the World DanceSport Federation, said breaking might still havea chance despite the worldwide criticism of Raygun's performance.

"We believe that this has nothing to do with our chances for Brisbane 2032," Nifontov said.

But even if breaking was a one-and-done Olympic event, some of the athletes say they don't mind.

"For us, as of now, this is the one and only," Kim told USA Today. "So to be a part of history is truly incredible."