Breaking: Extra cash for British breakdancing ahead of Olympics

It's an exciting time for British sport with breakdancing getting its debut at the next Olympics in Paris.

Following the events' success at the Youth Olympic Games in 2018, UK Sport has provided £135,000 to help GB's athletes qualify for Paris 2024.

The key elements of Breaking are footwork; blending artistry and athletic ability in dance.

It's the latest freestyle sport to be introduced following the debut of BMX freestyle and skateboarding at Tokyo 2020.

Four places on Team GB up for grabs

Olympic organisers have said that they want to include more events that will appeal to younger audiences.

"We saw the immense success of new freestyle sports in Tokyo which captured the imagination of the public and produced some of the iconic sporting moments of the Games," Dr Kate Baker, director of performance at UK Sport, told BBC Sport.

"Breaking has the potential to produce similarly memorable moments in Paris."

But first of all, Team GB needs some energetic young athletes to compete. And to compete, they need to qualify first.

France's b-boy Martin shows his skills at the 2018 Youth Olympics Games - it was a very popular event for audiences, which helped the organisers of Paris 2024 make the decision to include it.

There are four places on the Team GB team up for grabs and this funding will support a group of seven breakers aiming to secure a place on the final team.

After that, much like the recent success of the men and women gymnastics teams, the breakers must qualify to compete in the Olympic Games.

At the 2023 World Championship in Belgium next September, the first two athletes qualified to compete in Olympic breaking will be the B-Boy and B-Girl who are named champions.

A total of 10 athletes (five per gender) will qualify from the Continental Championships of their regions in July.

Finally, the Olympic Qualifiers Series will take place in March 2024, only a few months before the Games. B-Boys and B-Girls not yet qualified will have their last opportunity in this competition, which will offer the final 14 quotas slots available.

The International Olympic Committee approved the addition of breakdancing - which grew up alongside hip hop in 1970s America.

Breaking GB president Oliver Whittle said; "We're stoked with the award of the UK Sport investment fund... this is just the beginning of a journey of development and growth for our sport".

Breaking was confirmed as a new part of the Olympic programme in December 2020 and the announcement of the investment by UK Sport comes as Manchester hosts the European Breaking Championships on 5 November.

It will be a chance for some of GB's breaking stars, including Karam Singh and Anton Phung, to showcase their skills and prove themselves as a major contender for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.