As breaking makes its Olympic debut in Paris, learn about the rules of the Games’ newest sport.
How is Olympic breaking scored?
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At the Olympics, 16 men and 16 women (called "B-Boys" and "B-Girls") will compete in a round robin followed by quarterfinals, semifinals and medal battles.
Each battle features a best-of-three, one-on-one contest lasting approximately one minute. When one breaker finishes their round, their opponent instantly begins their routine in a battle format, also called throw downs.
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Moreover, each battle cannot last longer than 60 seconds, but there are no penalties for performing too long.
Unlike in figure skating or gymnastics, competitors are unaware of the music ahead of time — the improvisation element carries great weight in the judging.
What criteria do judges use for Olympic breaking?
A panel of nine judges score the b-boys and b-girls on six criteria: creativity, personality, technique, variety, performativity and musicality. Performativity and creativity hold the most weight (60%), and the other categories account for the other 40%.
For more on breaking, here’s an NBC Olympics primer on how the sport rose to the Olympic stage.
When is breaking at the 2024 Olympics?
The first ever Olympics breaking competition will be held from Aug. 9-10 at the Parc Urbain la Concorde in Paris.
B-girls will compete on Aug. 9 and b-boys will compete on Aug. 10.
