Our hopes for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games: breaking with Khalil Chabouni - video

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are approaching, and with them, the preparation of Olympic athletes is intensifying month by month, to be ready to collect as many medals as possible from July 26 to August 11, 2024. We've chosen to meet a dozen French athletes, who have already qualified or will be trying to qualify during the final months before the competition, to help you discover their passion and their world! This is your chance to find out more about some of the lesser-known disciplines or those recently added to the Olympic program, and to support the athletes who have touched your heart!

To kick off this series, we went to meet Khalil Chabouni, who spoke to Sortir à Paris about his sport, breaking, and his hopes and expectations for the Paris 2024 Games. Originally from Montpellier, he has been breakdancing for almost 20 years and trains at INSEP (Institut national du sport).

Paris 2024: history, schedule of events, athletes, breaking at the Olympic Games
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are an opportunity for the general public to get a closer look at less traditional sports. Discover breaking, the new sport of the Games, its history, where to practice it, our best athletes and the competition program! [Read more]

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What is breaking in a nutshell?

It's a dance that comes from a more global culture known as hip-hop, which is ultra well-known and also includes rap, for example. It's been inspired by many things, and today, as well as being an artistic discipline, it's also a sporting one, having been entered in the Paris Olympics!

How do the tests work?

To put it simply, the jury, made up of 9 jurors, has a tablet with criteria (musicality, technique...), there's what's called a"fader" (control button), and they can, via this cursor, give the winner. So it's pretty straightforward, and the more criteria you meet, the better your score. It's a comparative system.

Is it a choreography to be prepared in advance or more of a freestyle?

We don't do choreography, it's more of a freestyle dance, but we do have what we call"codes", meaning that we have paths that come up often and we can prepare our weapons a little in advance. The aim is to be able to adapt to the music, because in a battle, you never know the sound in advance. After that, there are the classics, breakbeats and music we obviously know, but the DJ can play whatever he likes, at any time. We have techniques that we refine as we train, and which we try to use in battle.

How do you qualify for 2024?

The only way left for us to qualify as Frenchmen are the TQOs, the Olympic qualifying tournaments. There are two events, one in Budapest at the end of May, one in Shanghai at the end of June, and in these events, we take points, and they'll take the top 10! There are already 6 qualifiers, plus 10 from the TQOs. On the day of the Olympic Games, August 9 and 10, there will be a top 16 girls and a top 16 boys.

How do you feel about this expectation?

It's a nice little thrill! It's true that there's a lot of pressure because it's in France and everyone wants us to win the medal, but in reality, you just have to remember that it's all about dancing, it's all about having fun! I tell myself that this is our home, so we all want to go, for that reason alone, but it's fine, I'm living it well, I'm sleeping well!

What difference has it made for the discipline to become Olympic?

In truth, it's added to the events, it's also propelled us into something more recognized. Since it's been at the Games, we're feeling a bit more recognition for this dance, especially the entry into the INSEP, which is incredible! To think that it was born in the streets and that today, we're part of a structure like this, where all the Olympic athletes train, and we have top-quality medical care, is just a plus, and I see it as a plus for this discipline.

Where do the events take place? What do you think of this spot?

Which countries represent the toughest competition for you?

The Dutch are really strong, the Japanese are hitmen, and there's a Canadian at the moment who's making finals wherever he goes, so really there's no one nation stronger than the others. There's break dancing all over the world, even in the remotest corner of Africa, and that's what I find incredible, is that this culture has touched everyone, and now break dancing is everywhere! Then, of course, there are the classics, the Americans, the Koreans, the Japanese, but the Olympic champion can be of any nationality in fact.

What's the difference in terms of preparing for the Olympics at home?

It's so good to be home! And when you're at home, you feel good, at least I do. Preparing at home is one of the best things you can do, and I think it's a great opportunity. We're chauvinists, it's our culture, and being able to sleep at home is priceless!

The discipline is not being renewed for the 2028 Olympics, do you think this is your only chance to win a medal?

Unfortunately! I think, simply because today I'm 31. If it had been renewed in 2028, 35, when you take care of yourself, is an age when you can break, after 2032, we don't know what's going to happen, and I think it's going to be complex for me! So, yes, it's my only chance of winning a medal, and I'd say even before that, it's my only chance of taking part in the Olympic Games, because not all dancers will be able to say that. That's what makes it so unique and magical!

After that, I'm a little disappointed that it won't be renewed, but what power do I have to change things? Not much, apart from tearing things up in Paris and making them understand that this is a mistake!

Tell us your story about breaking!

It's atypical! I'm from a generation where when I first got to know break dancing, when it arrived in France in 2002-2003, there was no Youtube, we didn't have the tools we have now like Instagram or Facebook. So I saw break dancers in the neighborhood where I lived, in La Paillade, Montpellier, down the blocks. I used to do taekwondo, and I've always loved the sport, ever since I was a kid. My parents introduced me to it at a very early age, and seeing the dancers got me interested straight away!

There was an athletic side, but at the same time a bit of a family side with the music and my mom took me to the Battle of the Year (international competition) and when I saw the event, it was a bit like a revelation. I said,"That's what I want to do! So I started training and staying with them, I had my big cousin who also broke, and one thing led to another and I spent a lot of time there.

What has the break brought you in life?

A lot of things! First of all, it's given me determination, values of tolerance and open-mindedness, and the ability to never give up. Because, in fact, we're very much self-taught, we have to learn a lot on our own, especially at the beginning, so you fall down and start again, we've all hurt ourselves lots of times and even with injuries, we still danced. It also gave me a crew, which is now a second family for me, I've met lots of friends, I've travelled a lot.

And of course it's given me a job on top of that! It's true that I'm saying this last, because for me, basically, it's just a hobby, you want to be recognized in this field, but today, in addition to my studies, it's also my job, it's how I earn my living!

Which sportsperson has inspired you?

A lot of dancers have inspired me, especially the older generation, Aktuel Force, Vagabond, Pockemon Crew, and also the veterans of my crew, Legiteam Obstruxion. And then there are the athletes. When I see Mohamed Ali, who for me is an example of a sportsman who manages to combine his values with his practice, it's incredible. Zizou too!

The place/club in the Ile-de-France region where you trained that marked your life?

Gare de Lyon and Châtelet-Les Halles are my favorite places. When I first came to Paris in 2005, I'd been breaking for 3 or 4 years. I was 13 when I arrived at Gare de Lyon from Montpellier, and there were breakdancers training there. It's true that in Montpellier, we train in the street, but at the time in Paris, we trained in the galleries, so in La Défense too. Today, well, that's not really possible...

What are your favorite spots to practice in the Paris region, and which ones do you recommend for beginners?

Personally, I'd recommend the CENTQUATRE, because it's an open space, and it's a cool place to start out, where you can meet people. Well, after that, the break at the beginning is very hard, so you mustn't give up, persevere. And then there's a small hall in Couronnes, a gym where you can train, which I also recommend. But I do have a slight preference for 104! It's a lot like the places I've trained at in the South of France, so I'm partial to it!

Where can you learn and practice breaking in Paris and the Paris region?
If you'd like to learn this urban dance style, the capital has a few places where you can practice breakdance. So, why not try out this physical sport, the new Olympic discipline, which requires flexibility? [Read more]

What advice would you give to those who want to take up the sport?

When you start out, ask yourself why. In reality, what I can see is that young people are really polluted by too much Internet and too many networks, but you have to share a bit more! You have to break away from it a little and not break to get millions of views and subscribers, you have to break because you want to, because you have goals. Do you enjoy what you do? That's the first thing. What do you want to leave to this dance? My advice is to reallydetach yourself from "fame".

Do you have a credo, a phrase you often repeat to motivate yourself?

"Atsome point, you have to stop thinking! (laughs)

A word to our readers?

SAP's special question: do you have a favorite place to go in the region that you'd like us to discover?