It’s official! Houston breakdancer Jeffrey Louis qualifies for Paris Olympics

HOUSTON – A new sport is debuting at the Paris Olympics this year, and a Houston man has learned he will be among the participants.

Jeffrey Louis, also known as B-Boy Jeffro, is a breakdancer from Alief. He announced on his Instagram page on Sunday that he had qualified to compete this year in the new Olympic sport of “Breaking.”

Louis went to Westside High School and the University of Houston.

He is considered one of the best in the world. He says his moves and gravity-defying acrobats were influenced by his childhood in Houston.

“Houston, the culture, is so diverse. It’s like a melting pot of different styles and languages ​​and characters,” Louis told KPRC 2’s Daniella Guzman.

He was introduced to breakdancing by his older brother. They traveled the world competing together.

Louis received a lot of recognition at recent world competitions, winning silver for Team USA.

“But it still feels weird to me that people see me as, like, oh, he’s number one. He is a contender for a gold medal at the Olympics. I’m just, like, it’s still crazy to think that,” Louis says.

Surprisingly, when he learned that “Breaking” would be an Olympic sport in 2024, his first reaction was not to compete or win.

“I was like, okay, let me see, how can I be a part of this? Not even competing, how could I be a part of it,” he explained to Daniella.

Louis believes adding the sport to the Olympics will be positive for breakdancing and the culture.

“There is little to no education, globally, about station wagons. So I feel like this is an opportunity to educate everyone on what exactly breakdancing is and the life skills that it brings and instills in people,” Louis said.

“Breaking is… it’s a party. And I think that’s what’s going to add to the whole Olympic platform.

WHAT IS THE COMPETITION FORMAT?

According to nbcolympics.com, 16 men and 16 women (called “B-Boys” and “B-Girls”) will compete, with a round-robin tournament followed by quarterfinals, semifinals and medal battles. . Each battle features a best-of-three duel lasting approximately one minute. When a breaker finishes their turn, their opponent instantly begins their routine in combat form. A jury of nine judges scores the B-Boys and B-Girls on six criteria: creativity, personality, technique, variety, performativity and musicality. Performativity and creativity carry the most weight (60%), and the other categories make up the remaining 40%.

WHEN DO THE OLYMPIC BREAK-UP COMPETITIONS TAKE PLACE?

B-Boys and B-Girls will face off on August 9th and 10th.

WHERE WILL THEY FIGHT?

The location is the La Concorde urban park. The total capacity for spectators attending the surging competition will be 25,000 people.