Rachael Gunn – the Australian B-girl known as Raygun whose awkward breaking style sparked significant backlash at the Paris Olympics – responded to criticism of her moves, urging the world to “please stop”.

The 36-year-old college professor from Sydney has been the subject of internet ire since her groundbreaking routine deviated from that of most of her competitors. Her wild style – replete with moves like “the kangaroo” and others that have been compared to a dog thrashing in the grass – has seen her lose all three bouts by scores of 0-18.

“We have five criteria in the comparative judging system. Her level may not have been as high as the other competitors,” said Martin Gilian, the chief Olympic breakdancing judge, at a post-event press conference. “We are again using a comparative judging system. Her competitors were simply better, but that doesn’t mean she was really bad. She did her best. She represented Australia and Oceania and did her best. She officially won the Oceania qualification. In case some people are wondering how she got to the Olympics, she qualified from her region. … Unfortunately, the other B-girls were better. That’s why she didn’t get any votes in her rounds.”

Speaking to ESPN, Gunn acknowledged her status as an “outsider,” claiming, “I wanted to come out here and do something new, different and creative – that’s my strength, my creativity.”

“I never intended to beat these girls in what they do best, which is the dynamic and powerful movements. That’s why I wanted to move differently, to be artistic and creative, because how often in life do you get the chance to do that on an international stage,” she added.

Since her Olympic debut, however, criticism of her performance has steadily increased. An anonymous petition on Change.org posted on Sunday accused Gunn of “manipulating the selection process for her own benefit” and demanded that Gunn and Australia’s Olympic chief Anna Meares apologize for “misleading the Australian public and attempting to manipulate the public and undermine the efforts of genuine athletes,” as CNN noted. The petition, which received over 56,000 signatures, according to NBC, was addressed to the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Gunn took to social media on Thursday to address the mounting criticism online. “Hi everyone, it’s Raygun here. I want to start by thanking all the people who have supported me. I really appreciate the positivity and I’m glad I was able to bring some joy into your lives, that’s what I hoped,” she began.

“I didn’t realise that it would also open the door to so much hate, which was quite devastating to be honest,” Gunn added. “Even though I went out there and had fun, I took it very seriously. I worked my ass off preparing for the Olympics and really gave it my all. I’m honoured to have been part of the Australian Olympic team and to be part of Breaking’s Olympic debut. What the other athletes have achieved has just been phenomenal.”

AOC released a separate statement calling the petition’s intentions “harassing, misleading and intimidating.”

According to the statement, AOC CEO Matt Carroll said the petition “contains numerous falsehoods designed to incite hatred against an athlete who was selected for the Australian Olympic team through a transparent and independent qualification and nomination process.”

The statement further quoted Carroll as saying: “The AOC is particularly outraged by the insult to our Chef de Mission, Anna Meares. The Chef de Mission of the Australian team played no role in the qualifying competitions or in the nomination of athletes to the AOC selection committee, of which the Chef de Mission and I are members.”

“It is disgraceful that these falsehoods, fabricated by an anonymous individual, can be published in this way. This is bullying and harassment and defamatory. We are demanding that the petition be removed from the website immediately,” Carroll continued. “The petition has incited public hatred without any factual basis. This is appalling. No athlete who has represented their country at the Olympics should be treated in this way and we support Dr Gunn and Anna Meares during this time. It is important that the community understands the facts and that people do not form opinions based on malicious falsehoods and misinformation.”

It appears that the Change.org petition is no longer available online.