Grace Sun "Sunny" Choi (born November 10, 1988) is an American breakdancer who competed in the inaugural breaking competition at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
[3][4] At the age of seven, her family moved to Louisville, Kentucky; Choi stated that her experiences with racism and alienation at predominantly white schools there led to an inferiority complex that impacted her into adulthood.
[2] Through college, Choi continued breaking despite her initial feelings of not fitting in due to her Asian-American identity and previous lack of interest in hip-hop with the exception of a "miniature, teenage Dirty South music phase".
[2][9] Nevertheless, Choi took on marketing and project management roles for financial security despite her lack of fulfillment with corporate environments, thinking of breaking as a hobby, and eventually joined Estée Lauder in 2021 as the director of global creative operations.
[12] In January 2023, six months after her win, she left Estée Lauder to focus on breaking and because her high-pressure corporate work contributed to her continuing cycles of depression.
[4][13] Choi has cited mental health and self-care as a core focus of her preparation, allowing her to address her insecurities and keep in touch with her emotions, which she attributes to improving and personalizing her dancing.