Breakdancing, or "breaking" as it's known among dancers, began as one pillar of a growing hip hop movement that also included DJing, MCing, and graffiti. Hip hop was born out of a time of urban decay and neglect in the Bronx, New York City in the 1970s. It quickly became a source of community and expression for Black and Latino youths. With its combination of athleticism and creative flair, it wasn't long before breaking exploded in popularity in the rest of the United States. Eventually, it made its way to Europe and Asia and other parts of the world through American movies and TV shows.

By the 1990s, breaking went from a party dance in the streets to a competitive art on international stages. Some of the oldest and most prestigious international competitions featuring crew battles are Battle of the Year in Germany, UK B-Boy Championships in the UK, Freestyle Session in the U.S., The Notorious IBE in the Netherlands, and Chelles Battle Pro in France.

Over the past two decades, an unlikely contender has emerged: South Korea. Despite never having competed until 2001 and not hosting their own annual international breaking competition until 2007, South Korea has proven itself as a worthy competitor.

For the purpose of this analysis, data was collected on the winning dance crews for four of the aforementioned championships (in Germany, UK, U.S., and France)*. The analysis is intended to observe trends in winning countries over the past three decades to understand where breaking culture has taken root, away from its beginnings in the Bronx.

At first glance, South Korea seems to be an unexpectedly strong contender, stepping onto the scene later than its peers. All other countries represented in the above chart have had dance crews competing internationally since the 1990s. Once South Korea joined in the 2000s, they swiftly racked up wins. Eventually, South Korean crews started outperforming the countries with a longer history with street dance culture.

What happens when we break it down further and look at the top winners of each championship?

Breaking down the top winners according to championships, South Korea is the only country that appears in the top two in each. Though the U.S. has accumulated the most number of wins across the four competitions, most of their wins occurred in its own U.S.-based competition. South Korea is the only non-Western country performing at such a high level at competitions in the West, something that could otherwise be difficult to achieve given barriers to access, resources, and travel.

It begs the question: How did South Korea emerge as a breaking powerhouse?

Looking at a timeline of breaking in South Korea, U.S.-South Korea relations played a pivotal role in exposing young Koreans to American culture. In the 1980s, American soldiers stationed in South Korea brought breaking to clubs in Itaewon in Seoul and other areas with military bases. In 1997, Korean American John Jay Chon, widely regarded as the pioneer of South Korea's breaking scene, brought over VHS tapes of Los Angeles breaking crews. Enthusiasts made copies of the tapes and distributed them even wider. By the early 2000s, South Korea began making its mark on an international level.

Though the Paris 2024 organizers approved breaking as an Olympic sport for the first time in its history, citing the mission of making the Olympics "more youth-focused," Los Angeles 2028 organizers have already omitted breaking from their program. The decision has confounded fans and dancers alike, given the West Coast's rich history and contributions to street dance culture.

Meanwhile, in 2023, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) and Korea Breaking Federation signed an agreement to introduce breaking into the public education system. After-school breaking classes will be offered in elementary and middle schools in response to its growing popularity among youth. SMOE Superintendent Cho Hee-Yeon has stated that the agreement will support South Korea's efforts competing in future Olympics and Asian Games events.

As breaking moves further away from the communities that created and made it into the global phenomenon it now is, there is a worry that the subculture will lose its original meaning as a space for marginalized youth. An American pioneer of breaking and a member of the famous Rock Steady Crew, Norman "Normanski" Scott, was quoted in the Los Angeles Times asking, "Will the youth of the communities where breaking started be represented in the upcoming Games?"