2024 Paris Olympics: Two Asian Americans will ;break' for the US

Breakers Sunni Choi, left, and Logan Edra will represent the United States at the Paris Olympics.

Don't call it breakdancing. From the streets of New York where it started to the Paris Olympics, Breaking is the Games' newest  sport.

With a four-member, half the USA's team are Asian American. The two women are Korean American Sunni Choi and Filipino American Logan Edra.

Choi, 35, a former gymnast, left her job as an executive for Estee Lauder and the high expectations of her immigrant parents, to do competitive breaking full-time.

Unlike other choreographed sports like gymnastics and ice-dancing, breaking is not judged on a point system. The breaking events, which kick off Aug. 9, involve one-on-one battles during which hip-hop DJs provide the beats and competitors take 60-second turns known as “throw downs.” They choose from three broad categories of moves: “top rock,” or standing dances; “freeze,” a halted position on heads or hands; and “down rock,” or flashy, acrobatic spins.

FYI: The Breaking competition is August 8 and 9. Olympic coverage the 2024 Paris Olympics, which will broadcast live across NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and GOLF Channel. Peacock is the official U.S streaming home, streaming every sport and all 329 medal events.

“So many people are choreographing, and it’s all about who can do the most difficult move stronger, higher, faster than everybody else,” the Tennessee-born Choi told the New York Times.  “That was always part of breaking, but breaking was also about just self-expression and getting out there and having fun and freestyle was such a big part of it for so many people.”

Breaking served a different pupose for the 21-eyear old Edra, aka Logistx. “Breaking is from the Bronx in the 70’s from hip-hop culture, and personally, I’ve always felt connected to breaking because it was one of the only things that allowed me to fully escape from the pain that comes with life,” Edra reveals to Character Media.

“There were a lot of traumas and hardships I had to get through as a kid, but when I'm breaking, it helps me find release from those and balance,” said Edra on her Red Bull artist page. “Breaking was born out of struggle, so I feel at home and like I belong when I'm dancing. When I break, I feel like a superhero. I feel empowered."

Not only is the San Diego-born Logan representing the USA in Paris, she acknowledges the responsibility of representing the Filipino American community. 

" It’s an emotional question for me because there are Filipinos around the world — there are a lot of us — [but] I feel lost sometimes because there aren’t too many role models out there representing [us] on large platforms. 

"I hope I can be an example for other young Filipinas and anyone in general. Sometimes it’s very stressful, and sometimes it’s very empowering. It’s not easy because I didn’t really plan to get as much visibility as I have now in my career. Getting recognition for my accomplishments and how I represent [myself] brings a sense of responsibility; there are other young Filipino girls out there, [and] maybe they see me and relate. My first mentor happened to be another Filipina B-Girl, and she is one of my best friends. What she did for me, I want to be that for other females. It wasn’t just about winning; it was also about connecting — being a support and being a big sister, too."

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