2024 Olympics: Jimmy Fallon Reveals How He's Preparing to Host the Closing Ceremony

Sunny Choi is excited to give the Olympics a (head)spin.

Next month, the breakdancer will be one of the more than 500 athletes representing Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics. But competing at the Games isn’t just a first for her—it’s an inaugural moment for her sport as breaking is making its debut this year.

But for the former gymnast who discovered breaking in college before going on to pursue a corporate career, it’s also the culmination of a 15-year journey.

“I never thought that I was going to get an opportunity like this again,” Sunny told E! News in an exclusive interview. “I thought that having done gymnastics, seeing that career ended, I kind of was like, ‘Alright, well, that dream’s done,’ we were moving on. So, getting a second chance at all of that was like a sign that life was saying, ‘Hey, like, why don't you try something a little bit different? Why don't you do something that makes you happy?’”

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Admittedly, she wasn’t exactly convinced breaking would ever make it to the sporting world’s biggest stage.

“I actually was really skeptical, because breaking, to me, had always been this very, very raw kind of gritty, street culture,” the 35-year-old explained, “And for so long, when I looked up to the Olympics, it was so refined, so elegant and breaking just seemed like the complete opposite. It has this energy that is just not really kind of felt in some of the other sports.”

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However, soon the question became, “‘Am I willing to give up everything for this?’” For Sunny, who recalled being “really miserable” and “burnt out” working in the corporate world, the answer was ultimately a resounding yes. And last November, she became the first U.S. woman ever to qualify to compete in breaking at the Olympics.

Pushing back on expectations to pursue her dream is what made the Incredible Egg’s “Meant to Be Broken” campaign speak to her.

“For so much of my life, I've been doing things the way I was told I was supposed to do them,” she shared. “I'm finally taking the time to step out of that and say, ‘Hey, I'm going to put me first. I'm going to do what makes me happy.’  For me, that's pursuing my dreams to be an Olympian in a brand-new sport—in a sport that's also a little bit more unexpected as a woman, as an Asian American.”

It's also a chance for Sunny and her fellow competitors to bring breaking’s infectious atmosphere and diverse community to a new audience. “The event's going to be a little bit like a party,” she teased. “We have loud music, we've got an MC, we have a DJ, we're dancing. So, what is there not to love?”

As she put it, “It's about sharing that moment with everybody. It's not just about any one of us that day.”

She also hopes it inspires viewers to give it a go. “That breaking is a very accessible sport, “Sunny noted. “You don't really need to pay into classes, you don't have to start by going to studio, you don't need equipment, you don't need an arena. You just need flooring, music and maybe some friends.”

But as she gears up for Paris, the athlete is focusing on fueling herself physically and mentally, whether it be going to therapy, strength and conditioning or helping herself to a sweet treat. (Sunny’s go-to is her homemade custard freezes.) 

Incredible Egg

And looking back at her “extremely fulfilling” road to the Olympics, Sunny sees this feat as her reaching her full potential.

“I've grown and I've changed so much as a human from the person I was when I first found breaking to the person I am today,” she expressed. “It's like, I almost don't recognize myself. I'm me, but just a very grown-up version of me—the very more wise and understanding and kind and the person I think I wanted to be. So I'm really grateful for this journey.”

Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, keep reading for some of the most viral moments from the sporting event.

Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics daily on NBC and Peacock until the summer games end with the Closing Ceremony on Sunday, Aug. 11, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.