Dial 671: Teenage Chinese B-Girl storms to BfG 2023 Kitakyushu crown, Amir stuns Shigekix en route to men's title
Seventeen-year-old Liu Qing Yi edges Ami in Japan to take rematch of World Championship final. Kazakhstan's Amir comes alive, beating Jeffro to the top of the podium in season-opening event.
Breaking
No, 671 isn't just a number.
The teenage B-Girl 671 from the People's Republic of China underlined her Paris 2024 credentials on Saturday (25 February), beating breaking world champion Ami 2-1 for the Breaking for Gold World Series Kitakyushu women's title in Japan.
In the year's maiden Breaking for Gold event, the men's crown went to the mercurial Kazakhstani Amir who knocked out crowd favourite Shigekix 3-0 in the semi-finals before edging Jeffro in the final.
Shigekix, competing on back-to-back weekends after winning the All Japans in Tokyo, claimed the bronze over Kuzya. Italian B-Girl Anti placed third on the women's side.
B-Girl 671 claims women's title
671, her real name Liu Qing Yi, got a bit of payback against Ami in a rematch of the World Championship final in Seoul in October.
Unlike the 8-1 gulf that existed five months ago, the final round was close, the decision going 5-4 in favour of the 17-year-old Chinese breaker.
"After the final I feel tired," 671 told Olympics.com. "This was the first battle of the year so I'm really happy.
"We take a lot of time to prepare for the battles. I think B-Boys and B-Girls are always confident.
"The Olympics is my dream. I hope I can stand on the Olympic stage. Of course, I want to win a medal."
The Breaking for Gold World Series is a crucial stepping-stone for aspiring Olympians like 671, who slayed another Japanese giant in Ayumi in the last eight.
Ami - who also reached the final of the All Japans last week in a losing effort against Ayumi - admitted she was spent by the time she reached the championship battle but made no excuses for the defeat.
"I think it was tough on the Japanese breakers," Ami said of the short turnaround for her and her compatriots. "But it couldn't have been easy for the B-Boys and B-Girls from overseas with the jet-lag and what not.
"We're all in the same boat. I'm glad I fought through it to get as far as I did."
Points from the serires count towards the Breaking for Gold rankings, of which the top 14 in each gender advance to next year's Olympic Qualifier Series.
Seven can qualify for Paris via the OQS where two universality places and one host country allocation will also be issued.
A total of 16 breakers will compete at the Olympic Games including the world champion and five continental Games champions.
Amir triumphs as Shigekix suffers shock semi exit
Shigekix did not get as far. Tipped as the favourite to win and drawing the biggest cheers from the crowd, the 20-year-old was surprisingly swept by the eventual champion Amir.
Shigekix was disappointed he came up short as he felt good enough to win.
"The way I felt yesterday and today, physically and mentally, I was in a position to win it," the world runner-up said.
"I need to take my lessons from that, but I got through these two weeks to the end without compromising my moves. I can barely walk now but I'm convinced this experience will pay off down the road.
"There's a lot to come this year and I can't stand still. I need to keep moving forward."
Amir went on to beat Jeffro two rounds to one in the final.
Points from the serires count towards the Breaking for Gold rankings, of which the top 14 in each gender advance to next year's Olympic Qualifier Series.
Seven can qualify for Paris via the OQS where two universality places and one host country allocation will also be issued.
A total of 16 breakers will compete at the Olympic Games including the world champion and five continental Games champions.