Breakdancers bring the house down

The 2025 Cloud Jam (Tayun Jue) Breaking Open Finals lit up the night and drew to a close in Kunming, Yunnan province, earlier this month.

The event attracted the participation of 1,500 dancers from 15 province-level regions and countries such as Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States, France and South Korea. The competition set up four major categories — Breaking Crew Battle, Breaking 2v2, Kids Breaking 1v1 and Kids Breaking Crew Battle — and unfolded over two days, from Aug 9 to the evening of Aug 10. Aug 9 was dedicated to grueling preliminary rounds, followed by elimination rounds on the 10th, culminating in a series of electrifying final showdowns on the evening of the 10th.

Adding to the spectacle was a captivating performance staged by national teams from China, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Malaysia. The crowd was also treated to a performance given by the judging panel itself, featuring luminaries such as Lian Jiulong — nicknamed Kowloon — who was a judge at the 2024 Olympic Games in breaking, and Mounir Biba, the head coach of the Chinese National Breaking Team and the legendary French b-boy.

After two days of fierce competition, the champions were crowned. Zhang Zhixun from Sichuan province claimed the title in Kids Breaking 1v1. 0831, a team from Yibin, Sichuan, dominated the Kids Breaking Crew Battle. Le Borthe from Vietnam won the Breaking 2v2 category. And finally, the Southeast Asian Team, a collaboration of breakers from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Malaysia, took home the crown in the Breaking Crew Battle competition.