Gunn, who has not yet returned to Australia following the Games, received strong support from Australian team chef de mission Anna Meares while still in Paris. On Thursday, the AOC went a major step further, refuting numerous erroneous stories it says have appeared online since.

Chief executive officer Matt Carroll said the the AOC had written to change.org, which had published a petition criticizing Gunn and the AOC, demanding that it be immediately withdrawn.

Carroll says the petition contained numerous falsehoods designed to engender hatred against an athlete who was selected in the Australian Olympic team through a transparent and independent qualification event and nomination process.

It is disgraceful that these falsehoods concocted by an anonymous person can be published in this way,” Carroll said.

The AOC said Thursday the Oceania qualifying event was conducted under the Olympic qualification system determined by the international governing body, World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) and approved by International Olympic Committee.

It said the judging panel for the event was selected by the WDSF and consisted of nine independent international judges.

Unattributed social media comments also suggested Gunn and her husband, fellow breaker Samuel Free, had held positions within Australian breaking organizations.

Rachael Gunn holds no position with AUSBreaking or DanceSport Australia in any capacity, the AOC said Thursday.

She is simply an athlete who competed in the qualifying event which she won.

Breaking at the Olympics might be a one-and-done in Paris. It is not on the competition list for the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, and also is unlikely to appear in 2032 at Brisbane, Australia.

First Published: Aug 15 2024 | 4:07 PM IST