The petition, published last Sunday and addressed to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the AOC, was posted to Change.org. It alleged —without evidence— that Gunn "manipulated" the selection process and that her husband could have been part of the selection panel "raising serious questions about the fairness and integrity of the process."

Furthermore, it called for Gunn and Chef de Mission Anna Meares to apologise for "attempting to gaslight the public and undermining the efforts of genuine athletes”. The petition collected around 45,000 signatures.

AOC chief executive Matt Carroll demanded the petition be removed immediately and said the organisation would consider legal action if it wasn’t.

"She was legitimately selected to the Australian Olympic team with the full support of her sport in a process that was covered by the international world dance federation, by the local DanceSport in Australia and all legitimately done," Carroll said in a statement. 

The AOC clarified that the qualifying event was conducted by the sport's international governing body, the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), as approved by the International Olympic Committee. The event’s judging panel was selected by the WDSF and consisted of nine independent international judges.

Gunn was "legitimately nominated" by DanceSport Australia to the committee after winning the qualifying event, the AOC added.

"The petition has stirred up public hatred without any factual basis. It’s appalling. No athlete who has represented their country at the Olympic Games should be treated in this way and we are supporting Dr Gunn and Anna Meares at this time," Carroll said of the petition.

Change.org said the petition was "flagged for misinformation" and removed after review.

B-girl Raygun, stole the spotlight at the Paris 2024 Olympics when she failed to impress judges in her battles, scoring a zero against USA’s Logistx, France’s Syssy and Lithuania’s Nicka. Her underwhelming performances have since then attracted widespread criticism, with many questioning how she qualified for the Games and some of the more hostile voices labelling her a national embarrassment.