We watched Netflix's Untold: Raygun - Breaking Badly a few nights ago and couldn't stop talking about it. It's the story of the Australian breakdancer who went viral at the 2024 Paris Olympics and was picked apart for it online. What stuck with us wasn't the routine everyone mocked. It was everything underneath it.
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The Risk She Knew She Was Taking
Two months before the Olympics, she already knew her performance probably wasn't going to land the way the judges wanted. She knew it might not go well at all. She competed anyway. That's the kind of courage that doesn't get talked about enough, showing up for something you love even when you already suspect it's going to go badly.
Why Her Husband's Support Actually Worked
Her husband stood behind her the entire way, but not blindly. When they realized her original routine wasn't going to connect with the judges, he was part of the push to change direction entirely and lean into something more authentically hers. That's a different kind of support than just telling someone they're the best. It's staying grounded with someone while they figure out what they're actually trying to do.
Richard Branson's Unexpected Move
After the Olympics, the online pile-on got bad enough that she left the country for a couple of months. Then she got a message from Richard Branson, a total stranger with no prior connection to her, who'd seen the backlash and decided to reach out. It took him two months to actually find her. He didn't give up. He helped her come home in a way that let her keep her dignity intact. Nobody saw that coming, including her.
Why We Pile on People Who Try
The bigger question this raised for us: why do we do this to people? Why is the instinct, when someone tries something in public and it doesn't land the way they hoped, to pile on rather than extend a hand? We don't have a clean answer. But it starts with each of us deciding not to participate in it, whether that's gossip in a friend group or piling on someone online.
Applying This to Our Own Lives
Johnna's been thinking about this in the context of her own surfing, getting back into something after twenty years away, where her brain remembers one version of her ability and her body is working with a completely different one. That takes its own version of the same courage this documentary is built around. It doesn't have to be an Olympic stage. It just has to be true for you.
If you want to hear the full conversation, including the parts we didn't get into here, the episode is up now. And if you've been following along, you'll notice things look a little different around here these days, new name, new site, same us. More at cjelevatedlife.com. If you want the fuller version of these conversations delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for the newsletter here.