By: Nina He

It’s hard to convince some people that breakdancing is an Olympic sport—but it is. Sunny Choi—whose first name is actually Sun—is living proof.

From South Korea, Choi’s parents, Kyung-Ju and Jung-In Choi, moved to the U.S., where they raised their kids.

Choi was an active kid, starting early in competitive gymnastics. Her brother, Jin, recalled, “I remember her doing cartwheels in diapers.” It would’ve been a funny sight to see a kid who would one day become one of the top seven breakdancer in the world doing cartwheels in diapers. But how did a gymnast become a breakdancer?

“…From a pretty young age, my sights were set on winning gold at the Games [for gymnastics]. When I was around 12, I think we decided not to go that path. And so I continued with gymnastics and I signed with the collegiate team. I ended up having a couple of injuries, so I quit gymnastics,” Choi said.

Luckily, while a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, Choi stumbled onto breaking.

Wandering the campus one fateful night, Choi came across what would be the inspiration of her career, the seed that would plant the rest of her life: members of a breaking club that were dancing on a walkway.

Seeing her interest, a member of the team persuaded Choi to come to a class. Her gymnast’s body took to the sport like a fish to water. Her movements were clear, graceful, and precise, yet filled with energy and power.

Fast forwarding a few years, Choi graduated from business school and became a cosmetics executive. Despite her job, Choi continued breakdancing, even participating in some international competitions.

She attended a camp for top U.S. breakers in late 2021, a year after breakdancing was added to the Olympics. When asked who wanted to make the Olympic team for breaking, Choi was the only one who didn’t raise her hand. With a full-time job, it was impossible for her to imagine making the Olympic team.

That changed. After finishing second at the World Games in July 2022, Choi left her job.

Despite it being a “really hard decision,” Choi said, “I’m so much happier. I feel lighter. I have more energy for the things I want to do.”

Choi is a top contender for the Paris Olympics. 32 breakers from the U.S. will participate, 16 women and 16 men.

Mary Fogarty, an associate professor of dance at York University, in Toronto, Canada, says, “She’s got the high-scale aerial power moves. Sunny is someone who has enough material to go all the way through.”

Before the games, however, Choi will need to meet with a sports psychologist for her self-doubt and confidence and a strength coach to keep her diet healthy and lift weights.

“You feel our energy [in breaking],” Choi said. “You feel the excitement, you feel the happiness or the anger or whatever emotion that the dancer is expressing in that moment.

“What’s so cool about breaking is you get to be authentically you.”