DAKAR, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) — China’s B-Boy Cui Shengyu, also known as Holy Rain, defeated Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yong Yue, or Saturn, 3-0 in the men’s breaking final on Friday, securing the final gold medal for his delegation as the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games came to a close.
With the victory, China finished atop both the gold and overall medal standings with 33 medals – 18 golds, eight silvers and seven bronzes.
Cui demonstrated his dominance from Thursday’s pre-selection onward, cruising into the gold-medal battle without dropping a single round.
Facing Lin in the final, Cui seamlessly combined high-difficulty power moves with musicality and originality across all three rounds to earn a 3-0 win.
The 16-year-old Chinese prodigy could barely contain his excitement after winning gold.
“To earn my spot at these Youth Olympics, I traveled to places like Australia over the past couple of years to compete in qualifying events, and then spent four months training before coming to Dakar,” he said.
“The Youth Olympics is a rare opportunity with so many top competitors. I’m thrilled to win the gold medal and see our national flag raised here,” Cui added.
Currently topping the WDSF Youth World Ranking, Cui said he held back some of his signature tricks during the pre-selection and round-robin stages so he could unleash his hardest moves in the knockout phase.
“I’m really satisfied with my performance in the final. Even if I won the gold medal, I wouldn’t be truly happy if I didn’t dance well enough,” he added.
According to his coach Qi Yu, breaking features a tight schedule with multiple rounds, prompting the coaching staff to map out a progressive game plan beforehand to balance difficulty and manage energy efficiently.
Qi also highlighted the role of improvisation. “We intentionally built room for freestyle into his rounds, and he really caught the vibe and rhythm of the venue in the final. That’s what made his performance stand out.”
Looking ahead, both Cui and Qi said they would continue to set higher standards and aim for bigger stages.
“I will stay grounded and keep training hard,” Cui said. “I hope to get the chance to compete at the Asian Games and the Olympic Games, contend for gold medals, and bring glory to my country.” ■