So I thought I’d do a recap of the 2023 Breaking season just before we dive full on into the 2024 season. Some who won what, personal honourable mentions, noteworthy news from 2023, and a glimpse at what's going down in 2024.
With so many competitions I couldn't do everything. I didn't do every winner in some competitions as it’s actually hard to find out who won every category of some events- organisers please put your winners on your website or do a saved IG Reel or Highlight clip. Or better yet, hire me and I’ll do it ;)
It's 365 of non-stop breaking events and moments, so I definitely missed memorable stuff. Maybe next time I’ll do video, but for now here’s my 2023 Breaking season rundown.
Firstly, and most importantly, super big shout out to all the Event Organisers, DJs, Hosts, Creative Producers, Stage managers, Judges, Judging system workers, Photographers, Videographers, Live stream people, event workers, Event volunteers, Brands, Sponsors, and all the other people who we wouldn’t have a an action packed, event and competitive scene without. The competitors are on the stage performing, but everything around making all that possible, and the opportunities and jobs that come from it, is created by all of you. Much love for the work you put in to making this scene flow and grow.
My Personal 2023 Honourable Mentions (Click names for a clip):
Diaz, Yasmin, Jeffro, Phil Wizard, Zoopreme, Nelzwon, Logistx, Hijack, Phil and Emma for always going off, putting the music first, and keeping it 100% when it comes to letting go and just breaking! They are not the only ones of course, just my picks as they got me hype and made me want to break every time I watched them.
Some Memorable and Viral Moments from 2023 (Click names for a clip):
Bboy Allan going crazy and almost KO’ing himself with his mad antics at Crashfest, at IBE. Hiro10 killer Flip Flop round at the Havaianas battle, at IBE.
Leon and Lunatic comeback of the year in the final of Breaking Classic, against Zoopreme and Lorenzo. Down 3 rounds to 0, in the first to 4 points, they then won 4 rounds in a row! Hype as fuck! I still think this is the best way to show scoring at breaking events! It engages the crowd and brings everyone fully into the battle. Samuka’s epic run in the Outbreak solo battle. He did 2-3 tie breaker rounds throughout the competition and came out on top in all of them. He lost in the finals to Lithe-ing, but I think we can all agree he was the Bboy of the day!
The ‘Kill the Beat’ Battle at the The Red Bull BC One World Final, put on by Tyrone and Mario from IBE, and DJ’d by Nobunaga. This was the musically driven battle we’ve all waited for! All I'm a say is go click >HERE< for the playlist of battles and them all to see Alvin going off after Lil G basically told him to “sweep the leg, no mercy!” Against Diaz (if you get the reference you are a certain age- lol), and Pac Pac taking the victory in the final! And Peaky Rock vs Snap, turning into all out crew war at the Cypher King final battle, at Outbreak Europe.
2023 COMPETITION WINNERS
As mentioned, I did the major competitions, as too many to do them all.
Undisputed Masters (including IBE and UK BBoy Championships)
At the Undisputed Masters World Final, in Tokyo, Japan, Phil Wizard and Nicka won the solos, and Body Carnival won the crew battle.
Then, for the new Undisputed series that began in 2023:
At Undisputed in New York (USA), Sunny and Hiro10 won the solos, Kanato won the kids, and La Nueva Religion won the crew battle.
At the UK BBoy Championships Undisputed competition, in London (UK) Phil Wizard and Stefani won the solos, and Smac 19 won the crew. Rack up another one for Phil Wizard.
At Undisputed Masters, at IBE, in Heerlen (Netherland), 671 and Monkey Z (both from China) won the solos, and Body Carnival won the crew. Another one for Body Carnival, and a double victory for China.
At Undisputed Masters in Sao Paolo (Brazil) Kley (who was in the final at IBE against Monkey Z) and Luma, won the solos, and The Big Players won the crew battle.
Outbreak- The Legits Blast Festival (Banska Bystrica, Slovakia)
Lil Zoo and Kuzya won the 2on2. This was the second year in a row that Lil Zoo was one half of the winning pair, winning it in 2022 with Phil Wizard.
Lithe-ing won the Outbreak solo battle, and Jason won the kids battle, another double victory for China.
Nicka won the B-Girl battle for the second time, joining Paulina (won twice) and Kate (won three times) as B-Girls who have won Outbreak (in Europe) more than once. Peak Rock won Cypher Cat (King).
Battle of the Year World Final (Osaka, Japan)
Predatorz won the crew battle.
FoundNation won best Show.
Phil Wizard won the solo. Yup chalk up yet another win, of many, for the Wizard.
Sarah Bee and Ayumi won the 2on2 Bgirl battle.
WDSF Olympic Qualification Series
The series started in September 2022, but this is a recap of 2023 only.
In WDSF Breaking for Gold World Series competitions
Amir and 671 won in Kitakyushu, Japan. Note that 671 beat Ami in the final because at the next competition…
Ami and Dany Dann won in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. This time Ami beat 671 in the final, but the two Bgirls battled in more major finals in 2023, so keep reading.
Phil Wizard and 671 (not against Ami in the final this time) won in Montpellier, France.
Shigekix and Nicka won in Porto, Portugal.
It was a double victory for Japan at the last event of the BfG series, in Hong Kong, where Riko and Issin won.
BfG International Series Competitions
Riko and Wing won in Montreal, Canada.
Victor and Riko won in Madrid, Spain. Riko winning her second one in a row here.
We had 6 Bboys and 6 Bgirls all qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics Games through Continental Games and Championships:
Continental Championships
Billy (Morocco) and El Mamouny (Morocco) were the first Bboy and Bgirl to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games by winning the WDSF African Championships, in Morocco. They won their Olympic spots at the African Championships because Africa didn’t have a Continental Games.
J Attack (Australia) and Raygun (Australia) won the WDSF Oceania Championships, in Australia, earning them their spots at the Olympic Games. Oceania also didn’t have a Continental Games, which is why the spots were earned at the Championships.
Victor (USA) and Nicka (Lithuania) won the WDSF World Championships, in Belgium, earning their spots at the Paris 2024 Olympics Games.
In the other Continental Championships, which were not for spots at the Games;
Ayumi and Wing won the WDSF Asian Championships, in China
Phil Wizard and Luma won the WDSF Pan American Championships, in Chile
And Nicka and Menno won the WDSF European Championships, in Spain. This one took place before Nicka won the Worlds in Belgium.
Continental Games
Dany Dann (France) and India (Netherlands) won the European Games in Poland, earning their spots at the Olympic Games.
Shigekix (Japan) and 671 (China) won the Asian Games in China, earning their spots at the Olympics. It was 671 and Ami yet again in the finals here.
Phil Wizard (Canada) and Sunny (USA) won the Pan American Games, in Chile, earning their Olympic spots.
*I didn’t go into second (silver) and third (bronze) place breakers, as the WDSF part of this recap would be even longer. But, even though they didn’t win golds, Anti, Stefani, Syssy, Jeffro, Gravity, Lee, Xak, Ayane, Mass, Logistx, Hiro10, Fresh Bella, Kate, La Vix, Lil Zoo, Lagaet, X-Rain, Hong10, Vanessa, Lithe-ing, Benmx, Kid Tek, Molly, Hannah, Matita, TawfiQ, Mids, Maess One and Chakib, all got on the podium, for silver or bronze, one or more times in the series. Good possibility I missed a name or few. If I did, it wasn’t on purpose.
Break Mission (Birmingham, UK)
Thesis won the solo battle.
Solid won the Bgirl battle.
Danger won U16 kids.
Filthy Beasts (Sheku, Thesis, Willastr8) won the 3on3 crew battle.
*I’m only putting names of crew members if I remember them off the top of my head.
The World Battle (Porto, Portugal)
Sheku won the solo battle.
Riko won the Bgirl battle. Riko put her name on the international map, this year.
Jason from China also won the kids battle here. After winning at Outbreak just before this he made it back-to-back wins at major kid battle competitions.
Almaty Team (Kazakhstan) won the crew.
The Red Bull Bull BC One World Final (Paris France)
Hong 10 won the Bboy battle, winning his third Red Bull BC One World Final and joining Menno as the only breaker to win the World Final three times.
Ami won the Bgirl battle, winning her second Red Bull BC One World Final and joining Victor (won twice), Kastet (won twice), Lilou (won twice), Hong 10 and Menno, as the only breakers to win it more than once. Ami also battled 671 again in the final here, making them tied at 2 victories each against each other in 2023 final battles… at least at the competitions I’ve listed on here. They have met in more 2023 finals.
Freestyle Session (L.A, USA)
Nicka won the Bgirl solo. Nicka had a good year.
Breakin MIA (Zeku, Nelzwon, Hiro10) won the 3on3 crew battle.
It was K-mel vs Junior in the final of the 40 and up battle, with Kmel winning.
Shuffle and Flow (USA) Won the 4on4 Kids crew battle.
Charlie Chillout won the Rocking battle. He also won the Rocking Battle at the Red Bull BC One World Final in New York. Keeping rocking alive!
Footwork, Top Rock and Power Battles- I know there were more than the ones I’ve listed, but because these are usually side battles, the winners aren’t showcased as much, or many times even put on socials. Let’s do better in 2024! Here's the ones I got.
Footwork Battles
Side won at the IBE Footworkerz battle, in Netherlands.
Chaubernard won the Outbreak Europe 7tosmoke footwork battle at The Legits Blast Festival in Slovakia
Diaz won at the Red Bull BC One Footworkerz World Final battle at the Red Bull BC One World Final in France.
Top Rock Battles
Peaky Rock won the Top rock battle at The World Battle, in Portugal.
Eddie Styles and Heat Rock won the 2on2 Top rock battle at Top Rock Society, in France
Power moves battle
Firebird won the Glory to Power Move battle. I believe this made her the first Bgirl to win an international power moves battle, but please correct me if I’m wrong.
That’s the end of the list. As I said, I couldn't list every competition, as there are just too many, like Groove Session, DPC, BBIC, Temple Rock, country breaking leagues and championships, and more. They all count and are all helping the scene grow and strive.
Other noteworthy Breaking News from 2023:
The movie ‘Breaking Point’ was released, starring breakers Karam, Kelvin, Jilou, Zoopreme, Madmax, Roxy, and more.
Nicka and Issin became Red Bull BC One All stars, now sponsored by Red Bull.
Nicka also won the Lithuanian Sports Woman of the Year.
Olympic inclusion brought sponsorship deals to dozens of breakers, including Sunni, Karam, Shigekix, Ami, Madmax, Camine, Anti, Jilou, India, Furia, Vanessa, Stefani, Lagaet, Allef, Kimie, Marlone, Ayu, and more. Nike, Adidas, Decathlon, Samsung, Lacoste, Mercedes Benz (yes, I said Mercedes Benz!), and Spotify, were amongst the brands who signed breakers to sponsorship deals in 2023. This all brought a year of ad campaigns, TV appearances, teaching opportunities, award shows, award nominations, performances and more.
We got the news that Breaking was not accepted into the 2028 LA Olympic Games. Getting into 2024 did not guarantee we’d get into 2028, unfortunately, but the same thing happened to Wushu and Sports Karate in the past, so it part of the course of the Olympics. But, we are still in the 2026 Youth Olympics Games, taking place in Africa.
Vans sponsored breaking battles went down in America.
Nike and Adidas sponsored battles went down in UK, France and Germany.
And, Outbreak Europe (which I was at) and The World Battle (which I wasn't at but heard about), possibly had the best after parties. ; )
A Quick Glimpse at what’s going down in 2024:
The only 2, three-time Red Bull BC One Champions, Hong 10 and Menno, are going to have an exhibition battle in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, On January 26! Epic way to start the year! It’s what people want to see!
Undisputed Masters World Final in Tokyo, March 16-17. It’s going to go off in Japan!
The iconic Red Bull Lords of the Floor competitions return April 6, in Seattle, USA!
The two OQS (Olympic Qualifying Series) events will go down in Shanghai, China, May 16-19, and Budapest, Hungary, June 20-23. The 40 Bboys and 40 Bgirls who have qualified for the OQS, will battle it out for the last 10 Bboy and 10 Bgirl spots at the Olympic Games. Let’s get it!
Then it’s the 2024 Paris Olympic Games where the 16 qualified Bboys and 16 qualified Bgirls will compete to become the first, and possibly only ever, Breakers to win Gold, Silver and Bronze medals at the Summer Olympic Games! Breaking is scheduled for August 9 (the Bgirl battle) and 10 (the Bboy battle). Who you got your money on to get on the podium?
After the Olympics, August is going to be a banger with 3 of the biggest events on the scene going down on back-to-back weekends: with IBE- August 16-18, Outbreak Europe- August 22-25, and The World Battle- August 28 – Sept 1.
Unbreakable is on the last weekend of September, 28th and 29th.
WDSF is doing a Youth Battle in China, getting ready for the Youth Olympic Games, the same weekend as Unbreakable, September 28th and 29th.
And the Red Bull BC One World Final will go down in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil on December 7th!
With that, this is the end of my Breaking 2023 recap. Obviously there was a LOT more that happened, but I hope you enjoyed reading this, looking back and felt informed. I'm looking forward to catching up with people for more moments in 2024.
Love, Peace and Hip hop
Emmanuel Adelekun
The Vivid Scribe