PARIS — Canadian b-boy Phil Wizard (Philip Kim) took gold in the first Olympic men's breaking tournament Saturday.
''I never thought I'd be here in my life,'' the 27-year-old said, wiping away tears. He spent the last few sleepless nights ''tossing and turning'' because he was ''stressed out of my mind.''
''I cried yesterday because I was so scared to do this, and, I'm just happy. I'm just happy," he said.
Hometown favorite French b-boy Dany Dann (Danis Civil) won silver, and American b-boy Victor (Victor Montalvo) took the bronze after taking out Japanese b-boy Shigekix (Shigeyuki Nakarai). These Olympic medals may be the last for breaking, at least for some time — the dance form is not in the lineup of sports for the Los Angeles 2028 Games.
''Local hero" Dany Dann, as the emcees referred to him, took the stage each round to rapturous applause, with the crowd chanting ''Dany! Dany!'' every time he landed a power move. Kim amazed spectators with his powerful moves, quick feet and quirky personality that he synced to the music.
''It's my spontaneity," Kim said of his style and what won him the first-ever men's gold medal in breaking. "I just go up there and whatever the music dictates me to do, I do. And I think because of that, I can create some magic moments.''
The entire stadium cheered on its feet as both b-boys hugged before the judges announced their scores. Although the battles sparked fierce competition, between rounds and after each battle, the breakers exchanged hugs, pats on the back and sometimes even synced up their movements with each other, contributing to an atmosphere that remained true to the party culture of hip-hop ''jams'' and ''cyphers'' — an informal circle formed by breakers in which they enter one by one to dance and battle.
''I felt like we were all in this together," said Montalvo. ''This is the Olympics and there's all eyes on us, you know, different people that have never seen breaking. And that's why I was hyping everyone up, like, 'yeah, let's go!' Each and everyone of my competitors because I want the crowd to see that ... A win — it's just a win for all of us.''