PARIS – Phil “Wizard” Kim, the entertaining, athletic B.C. breaker put on a show on Saturday night all right and came away with Canada’s 27th medal of the Games, and the country’s ninth gold.
It was a wild atmosphere in the final against France’s own Dany Dan as sunset arrived in Paris on the last full day of these Games.
Kim knows perfectly well that a good portion of the audience taking in the debut of breaking here might not have a clue what they were watching. And the country’s newest medallist is okay with that.
It was an artistic and athletic triumph for Kim – and yes, Olympic sports can be and often are both – even if there is some explaining to do.
“A lot of people might look at us and not understand what we’re doing but to an experienced breaker, we’re showcasing originality, musicality and diversity,” said Kim.
“For me this has always been my dream. I’ve always wanted to live off of breaking. And the people I compete against on the stage are the people that I grew up watching and I look up to.
“So for me it’s a joy just to be up there and representing my country now on a stage and scale like this. I’m happy to represent.”
The 27-year-old is certainly one of the most engaging Canadian athletes here, a man passionate about his sport and determined to help it grow. Yes, breaking is a one and done sport not on the menu for Los Angeles 2028 after making its debut here. And yes, it’s a judged event that takes some getting used to, both in its style and what is needed for success.
For entertainment though, there’s no denying breaking moves the meter.
The fans were loving it, even if they weren’t completely understanding it as the boos after favoured American breaker Victor downed Japan’s Hiro10 in one “battle” of the round-robin phase. The latter had an impressive physical performance, the former a more judge-friendly artistic effort.
“They booed because the physicality that Hiro10 has was amazing,” Victor explained. “I don’t have that type of physicality, but I beat him in a different way, which was originality, which was dancing, which was having my own style and not repeating. I understand why they booed because this is their first time watching breaking and they don’t know how it’s judged.”
They may not have completely understood it, but they loved it.
The crowds were festive and vocal and those without tickets to the arena lined up 10 deep or more in spots on the outside to soak up the atmosphere and enhance the vibe. Outside of the stadium, kids of all ages – I saw one as young as two – where breaking out their moves between sessions.
The sport is made for viral moments as well, of course, as we saw with the whole B-girls explosion from Aussie Raygun’s efforts the previous night.
Back to Kim, who breezed through the round-robin phase winning all three of his battles and then defeated Lee of the Netherlands in the quarter final setting the stage for his medal run. Judges gave him the 3-0 decision over Shigekix setting up the gold medal showdown with the Parisian Dan.
Victor, the 2023 world champ and thus the favourite here, is a big backer of Canada’s best breaker.
“Phil Wizard is amazing,” Victor said. “He’s got the formula down. He reminds me of me. He started figuring it out, started performing and kept on getting better and better and better.
“He’s so unique – a lot of threads and unconventional type movements. He’s also super musical and a showman on stage. He knows how to adapt in the moment and has that unexpected factor to the beat.”
Breaking’s somewhat controversial addition to the Olympic menu and then sudden departure can’t be easy for the athletes. It must be especially vexing given the huge crowds at La Concorde on Saturday as a wicked hot afternoon bled into a sultry summer evening for the elimination rounds.
It’s often difficult to predict how a new sport is received at an Olympics – or how it got there in the first place. The clear impetus was to appeal to a young crowd and in its debut here that was indeed accomplished. It was bittersweet, however, given the quick erasure from the menu.
“Of course it’s disappointing for us, but I think my focus and everyone’s focus is just to put on a good show,” Kim said. “I want people to fall in love with breaking the way I fell in love with it when I first started and I think the Olympics is not the be all and end all.
“I think it’s unfortunate because I’ve truly fallen in love with the process and the sports world and meeting other athletes and being a part of Team Canada. It’s been truly an honour and Im very said that this will be a one and done. But I have a very positive mindset going forward. I think people are falling in love with breaking and for me that’s always been the goal – to grow this sport.”
Victor feels the same way. The culture of breaking is such that it can be artistic and entertaining but also competitive with a a profound sense of camaraderie among the dancer athletes.
“People can pick their favourite character,” Victor said. “We’re all characters. We all have our different styles and it’s so cool to watch. I’m excited that the Olympics put breaking on the map because now they get to see a new and evolved version of breaking, not the breaking from the 1970s, the breaking from now that everyone has been missing out on.”