Sunny Choi, 35, is the first American woman set to compete in breaking at the historic debut of the dance sport at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Choi had a career-ending knee injury that led her gymnastics dreams to her passion in the breaking scene.
Sunny Choi’s Early Years in Tennessee
Sunny Choi was born Grace Choi on November 10, 1988, in Cookeville, Tennessee. Her parents, Jung-In Choi and Kyung-Ju Choi, had immigrated from Daegu, South Korea in 1977 to attend graduate school at the University of Tennessee. Jung-In studied math while Kyung-Ju pursued chemical engineering degrees. After having Sunny, the family nicknamed her “Sunny” by adding an endearing Korean suffix to her Korean name Sun.
Despite being raised in a strict Korean household as the only girl with three older brothers, Sunny developed an upbeat, friendly personality. Her brother Joon attributes her disposition to growing up as the second youngest of four kids. Sunny got along well with her siblings Jin, Joon, and Young.
Sunny Choi’s Family Role in Her Olympic Dream
Sunny’s brother Joon dabbled in breakdancing himself when he was younger. Having attended several of Sunny’s competitions in Los Angeles where he lives, Joon has always encouraged his sister’s Olympic dreams. He jokes about dancing with abandon, saying “To be one of the top 16 breakdancers in the world going to the first Olympics for the sport is like record book stuff.”
In contrast, Sunny’s mother Jung-In Choi took longer to accept her daughter’s career. She only first saw Sunny perform live on stage at last year’s Red Bull BC One National Championships. While impressed by Sunny’s talent, she still saw breaking as less viable than a traditional profession.
Jung-In Choi now proudly shares clips of Sunny’s performances with friends and even volunteers Sunny to teach breaking at a church camp.
Sunny Life After College
Sunny Choi graduated from the university in 2011 with a business degree, despite disliking her major. Her distaste for business was outweighed by a fear of financial instability.
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After graduating, Choi briefly worked various full-time marketing jobs. But She still felt something was missing career-wise.
Choi then tried her hand at coaching gymnastics at the renowned 92nd Street Y in New York City.
Sunny Choi Makes History By Qualifying for Paris 2024 Olympics
On Saturday, American b-girl Sunny Choi took the first-ever gold medal for breakdancing at the Pan American Games. She dominated her opponent, Colombian breaker “Luma” in the finals by winning their head-to-head battle 3-0. The scoring system for the fiercely competitive dance battles measures individual matchups between two breakers.
In addition to winning the historic gold medal, 34-year-old Sunny Choi also qualified for the 2024 Olympics in Paris by advancing to the Pan Am Games finals, as the 7th-ranked breakdancer globally.
Career
Early Love of Gymnastics
Sunny Choi first fell in love with gymnastics as a toddler while watching the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. She begged her mom to enroll her in classes and proceeded to train 25 hours a week throughout her childhood. Though she dreamed of qualifying for the Olympics in gymnastics, her intense schedule didn’t allow it. Still, she remained dedicated through high school and college at the University of Pennsylvania.
During freshman year, Choi was intimidated when first exposed to breakdancing, which seemed much more improvisational than rigid gymnastics routines. However, after two ACL tears forced her withdrawal from Penn’s gymnastics team, Choi found community in Philadelphia’s vibrant breaking scene. She frequented local practices and workshops, enamored by the dance form’s origins and culture.
“Growing up in a household with Korean roots but on American soil, I never felt like I fit in,”
she says
“I didn’t speak Korean well, dressed American, and brought Korean and American foods for school lunch. I had a bit of an inferiority complex, which I didn’t realize until recently. That’s probably one of the things that made me want to get out of Kentucky.”
Choi also opened up about the traumatic bullying she endured after her family moved to Louisville in elementary school. Racist classmates tormented her for her Korean background.
Choi also opened up about the traumatic bullying she endured after her family moved to Louisville in elementary school. Racist classmates tormented her for her Korean background.
Though Choi initially tried maintaining her intense gymnastics schedule and Wharton business classes at Penn, she soon lost steam. When her mother sees her GPA slipping she threatens to remove her from college, Choi negotiates another chance to follow her newfound love of breaking instead.
Career-Ending Knee Injury
Sunny Choi dedicated 15 years to competitive gymnastics before a severe knee injury abruptly halted her career. After a complicated surgery resulted in lasting complications, Choi was forced to quit gymnastics permanently right before starting college.
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Choi found inspiration in Philadelphia’s vibrant breaking scene. As she attended local practices and events, she reconnected with the sense of “Zen flow” she once felt while competing in gymnastics. When breaking, Choi enters a meditative state, freely dancing to the music.
Sunny Choi’s Professional Career Rises Through Breaking Ranks
Sunny Choi first tried breaking during freshman year by joining a club at UPenn. In 2012, Choi moved to Queens, NY, and began traveling the world to battle at breaking competitions. She started gaining recognition in 2019 after winning silver at the World Urban Games. At the 2022 WDSF Breaking Championships, Choi placed a respectable 7th overall.
Choi recently captured the coveted title of USA B-Girl Champion after prevailing at the high-stakes Red Bull BC One National Finals last month. As the #1 woman breaker in the United States, she has firmly established herself among the country’s breaking elite.
Before heading to the 2024 Olympics, Choi will first try her hand at winning the Red Bull BC One World Finals this November. Known as the “Super Bowl of break,” the global competition represents her chance to demonstrate she is the very best b-girl on the planet.
