From its roots in 1970’s New York street culture and the burgeoning hip-hop scene, to a bonafide Olympic sport, Breaking makes its first appearance at the Games this week.
More commonly known as breakdancing, the men’s and women’s Breaking competitions will see competitors trying to impress a panel of nine judges in a series of one-on-one battles with a DJ and MC providing the music.
The B-boys and B-girls will try to out do each other by performing high-scoring ‘Power moves’ like acrobatic spins and flips, while the judges will also be awarding points for each routine based on creativity, personality, technique, variety, performativity and musicality.
A total of 33 B-Boys and B-Girls from 16 nations are set to take part it what could be the first and final appearance of Breaking at an Olympic Games, with the sport not selected for inclusion at the 2028 Olympics in LA.
Florida-born Victor Montalvo will represent Team USA in the inaugural men’s Breaking event at the 2024 Olympics.
You can find the full schedule for both the men’s and women’s events further down in this article.
Although Peacock is the best way to stream the 2024 Olympic games, you can watch much of the Olympics across NBC’s family of channels — NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel — with cable or satellite TV or a live TV streaming service.
How to watch Olympic Breaking
If you’re looking to watch all of the breakdancing action at the 2024 Olympics in the US, you’ll want Peacock. Even after a recent price hike, which raises the monthly charge from $6 to $8, Peacock is one of the most affordable streaming services. With it, you can watch any event live; NBC states Peacock will stream 5,000 hours of live coverage throughout the Games, including all 329 medal events and, crucially, every event of both the men’s and women’s gymnastics.
In addition to live-streaming each event, Peacock will have a whip-around show, Gold Zone, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET (4 a.m. to 2 p.m. PT) each day. If you’re watching an event on Gold Zone that you’re really into, you can continue to watch it even if Gold Zone cuts away to something else. Peacock will display Live Action on-screen prompts that will let you stay with the event or follow Gold Zone’s coverage.
Peacock will also have four multiview options that will let you watch four events at once. You’ll be able to watch NBC’s nightly Primetime in Paris show on Peacock, and Peacock will have its own daily recap show “hosted” by AI-generated Al Michaels.
Peacock offers two Premium plans, and each costs $2 more a month than it did last week. After the recent price increases, the ad-supported Premium plan will cost $8 a month, and the ad-free Premium Plus plan will cost $14 a month. You can use either Premium plan to watch the Olympics.
If you’re a new Peacock customer, subscriptions cost $8 per month for Peacock Premium and $14 a month for Peacock Premium Plus. Annual plans are $80 for Premium, while Premium Plus costs $140 a year. Existing subscribers will pay these new rates starting on Aug. 17.
Where are the 2024 Olympic breaking being held?
The women’s and men’s breaking events are being held at Place de la Concorde, the iconic public square in the heart of Paris.
When does the 2024 Olympic breaking event start and end?
Here’s the full schedule for the men’s and women’s events.
Friday, August 9
- B-Girls Round Robin – 2 p.m. CET local time, 3 p.m. BST, 10 a.m. ET, 7 a.m. PT, 12 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Girls Quarter-Finals – 8 p.m. CET local time, 7 p.m. BST, 2 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT, 4 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Girls Semi-Finals – 8:45 p.m. CET local time, 7:45 p.m. BST, 2:45 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT, 4:45 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Girls Finals – 9:15 p.m. CET local time, 8:15 p.m. BST, 3:15 p.m. ET, 12:15 p.m. PT, 5:15 a.m. AEST Sunday
Saturday, August 10
- B-Boys Round Robin – 2 p.m. CET local time, 3 p.m. BST, 10 a.m. ET, 7 a.m. PT, 12 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Boys Quarter-Finals – 8 p.m. CET local time, 7 p.m. BST, 2 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT, 4 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Boys Semi-Finals – 8:45 p.m. CET local time, 7:45 p.m. BST, 2:45 p.m. ET, 11:45 a.m. PT, 4:45 a.m. AEST Sunday
- B-Boys Finals – 9:15 p.m. CET local time, 8:15 p.m. BST, 3:15 p.m. ET, 12:15 p.m. PT, 5:15 a.m. AEST Sunday
What’s the time difference between Paris and the US?
Paris is 6 hours ahead of New York and the rest of the Eastern time zone. It’s 7 hours ahead of the Central time zone, 8 hours ahead of Mountain time and 9 hours ahead of Pacific time.
This difference means that most events will be shown live in the morning and afternoon for US viewers.
Who’s on Team USA for Breaking?
Last year’s WDSF men’s world championship winner Victor Montalvo, known as B-boy Victor leads, Team USA’s charge for gold in the Men’s competition, with B-boy Jeffro (Jeffrey Louis) as the other American competitor in the field.
Team USA’s Sunny Choi is a genuine medal contender in the women’s event, having won gold at last year’s Pan Am Games in Santiago, Chile.
Recent Pan American Games winner Sunny Choi (B-girl Sunny) and BC One champion Logan Edra (or B-girl Logistx) will meanwhile be representing Team USA in the women’s event.
Do I need Peacock to watch Olympic breaking in the US?
Nope, you can watch the breaking events on TV, but Peacock will give you access to every event.
In the US, you need five TV channels for the Olympics: NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Two of those channels — NBC and E! — will show the women’s and men’s Breaking.
NBC will broadcast its Primetime in Paris show each evening in the US. Mike Tirico hosts the show, which includes reports from Snoop Dogg.
What’s the best live TV streaming service for the Olympics?
Sling TV is the most affordable option if you live in one of the few markets where it offers NBC. Failing that, YouTube TV is the best service for the Olympics because its base plan, which costs $73, offers all five channels you’ll need.
If Sling takes a conditional gold medal and YouTube TV gets the silver among live TV streaming services for watching the Olympics, then Hulu with Live TV is awarded the bronze. It costs only $4 more per month than YouTube TV and includes all five channels for watching the Olympics.
Read more: Best Sports Streaming Service for 2024
With a live TV streaming subscription (or cable-satellite plan), you’ll be able to authenticate yourself as a paying TV subscriber to watch live streams of every event on NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, the NBC app or the NBC Olympics app. That’s a great option if you don’t want to sign up for Peacock and want to pick and choose which events to watch.
Sling TV’s $40-a-month Blue plan includes NBC, USA Network and E!. You can add CBNC for an extra $6 a month and the Golf Channel for another $11 a month. Even with those add-ons, Sling TV is the cheapest way to get all five channels for the Olympics — provided you live in one of the few markets where Sling offers NBC.
YouTube TV costs $73 a month and includes NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to confirm which local networks are available in your area.
Hulu with Live TV costs $77 a month and includes NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Click the “View channels in your area” link on its welcome page to confirm which local channels are offered in your ZIP code.
All of the live TV streaming services above allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. For more information, check out our live TV streaming services guide.
How to watch Olympics breaking from anywhere with a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view Olympics breaking locally, you may need a different way to watch the games — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Latest Tests DNS leaks detected, 25% speed loss in 2024 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It’s normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you’ll get three months free and save 49%. That’s the equivalent of $6.67 a month with code SPECIALDEAL, which should be automatically applied.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Livestream the 2024 Olympic breaking in the UK
The BBC will broadcast the 2024 Games on its free-to-air channels, but coverage is limited to BBC One and BBC Two. You can also live stream all the action from Paris on the BBC iPlayer.
The BBC iPlayer has dedicated apps available for Android and Apple mobile devices, as well as a vast array of smart TVs and streaming boxes, all you need is a valid UK TV license to stream the tournament.
The BBC promises more than 250 hours of live coverage of the Olympics across the two channels, but not every round of breaking is set to be shown. For those in the UK wanting more comprehensive coverage of both tournaments, as well as the Olympics as a whole, Discovery Plus is where it’s at, which is offering 3,800 hours of live coverage across 55 dedicated online channels.
A subscription to Discovery Plus in the UK costs £7 per month or £60 for the year.
The service is available on a wide array of devices and also includes access to all Eurosport TV channels.
Livestream the 2024 Olympic breaking in Australia
Aussies can watch Olympic breaking on the Nine Network. The Network will have select live coverage of the Olympics, and you can watch on-demand highlights on the network’s streaming service 9Now.
Meanwhile, pay-TV service Stan Sport will show all 329 Olympic events ad-free and in 4K Ultra HD.
Channel 9’s streaming service 9Now is free to use for viewers in Australia, with dedicated apps for Android and Apple devices, as well as Amazon Fire, plus a wide range of smart TVs.
Stan Sport costs AU$10 a month (on top of an AU$10 Stan subscription), but the streaming service is currently offering a seven-day free trial. It will show every event — ad-free and in 4K — and you’ll be able to stream live or on-demand.
Livestream the 2024 Olympic breaking in Canada
In Canada, the Games will be broadcast on TV channels CBC, TSN and Sportsnet. They will be shown on the free CBC Gem streaming service also.
The free CBC Gem streaming service will show live events each day of the 2024 Olympics.
Quick tips for streaming the 2024 Olympics breaking using a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming the Olympic breaking live may vary.
- If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
- If you’re having trouble watching the Olympics after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
- Remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.
