Rachael “Raygun” Gunn says her performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics was “not as bad as I thought!” after the Sydney-based breaker revealed she had finally watched back the moment that catapulted her to international fame – and mockery.

The Sydney academic turned speaker was Australia’s first Olympic breakdancer and became a viral sensation after her unconventional routine at Paris 2024, where she failed to receive a single point from the judges.

In an interview with CNN published on Wednesday, Gunn explained her reaction to instant global notoriety.

“When I went viral, it was surreal. It made me feel kind of sick in the stomach – this sense of dread. I just thought: ‘Surely, this is not actually happening. Surely, this is a weird, egotistical dream I’m having where I think my face is spread around the world.’ It was a really strange experience,” she told the network.

Speaking about the forthcoming Netflix documentary, Untold: Raygun: Breaking Badly, Gunn said she had enough distance from the Games to process the day and its impact on her mental health.

“Paris is now just a part of my story,” she told CNN. “For me, it’s more about radical acceptance of everything that’s happened and just one foot in front of the other, just trying to move ahead.”

In an interview in 2024, Raygun said that she had only seen “little bits and pieces” of her performance. Speaking to CNN this week, she revealed that she had since watched it in full.

“I can’t remember why, but I ended up watching it and I was like, ‘Oh, it’s not as bad as I thought!’” she said.

Gunn also reflected on what she had learned from the experience, saying: “I do think that we put in a little bit too much credence in online reactions. But online is not the real world. I get absolutely rubbished online, but I get a very, very different response in person. It’s a completely different experience.

“Maybe we need to reframe [ending up online] as a badge of honour that you’ve actually done something interesting.”

Reflecting on the aftermath of her performance, Raygun says: “I do think that we put in a little bit too much credence in online reactions. But online is not the real world.” Photograph: John Walton/PA

She also compared the treatment of female Olympians with their male counterparts.

“I think female athletes are under more scrutiny. They just are. It’s in terms of how they perform, what they wear, what their body shape is – they’re too muscly, they’re not muscly enough, they’re too chubby, they’re too skinny.”

The global reaction to Raygun included comedian Rachel Dratch dressing up as the breaker on the Jimmy Fallon show, while Australia’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, praised the former cultural studies academic for having “a crack”.

A proposed show, Raygun: The Musical, created by Steph Broadbridge, was cancelled by the breakdancer’s legal team, who sent notices to the production, ultimately leading to its demise.

“They were worried I was damaging her brand, which I would never do,” Broadbridge said in a video shared to Instagram in 2024.

In an earlier statement, Gunn’s legal team said, “While we have immense respect for the credible work and effort that has gone into the development of the show, we must take necessary steps to safeguard Rachael’s creative rights and the integrity of her work.”