Taisiia Onofriichuk turned in a routine at the Olympics this week that certainly embodied the inspiration behind her performance.
Performing to Michael Jackson’s infamous song “Thriller,” the 16-year-old Onofriichuk became a bit of a viral sensation due to her seamless moves during her Olympics performance.
The video was considered trend-setting when it was released four decades ago. Now, Onofriichuk’s routine has very much embraced the song’s cutting-edge feel.
In April at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup, Onofriichuk took home medals in the ball routine (bronze) and clubs (silver). Her hoop routine was a real fan favorite as she even moonwalked at certain points of her performance.
For a country like Ukraine that has certainly suffered dramatically over the past two years, the showing from Onofriichuk in this moment is certainly a deeply felt point of national pride.
This rhythmic gymnast did a Hoop performance to ‘Thriller’ and absolutely killed it. pic.twitter.com/FrvJpMIrZb
— Shooter McGavin (@ShooterMcGavin_) August 9, 2024
“Thriller” was considered a trend-setting video when it came out nearly 41 years ago and it propelled the aforementioned Jackson’s career to international stardom. Crazy to think that the iconic video and song are more than double the age of Onofriichuk.
In a recent interview with Reuters, Iryna Blokhina, the vice president of the Ukrainian Gymnastics Federation, said that recent attacks in their homeland have hampered the team’s ability to train.
