When most people think of cheerleading, they think of the spirit squads that attempt to pump up the local crowd at high school basketball and football games. People are not aware of what these athletes are doing when they are not in front of these crowds. Strangers to cheerleaders who do not follow the sport extensively do not know the exact involvement of the athletes in this sport, at all ages. Cheerleading requires athleticism like all other sports as you must be in shape and at a great fitness level to be involved in most circumstances. Cheerleaders have to know what they’re doing at all times; while knowing what everyone else on the team is doing as well, which involves a high level of mental preparation. Cheerleading, high school or club teams are now considered one of the most dangerous sports, and there is even a rule book for competition cheerleading now. The book consists of the same concepts that any other team sports such as football would include. The book has rules and regulations for jumps, stunts, tumbling, and many other conditions that involve the sport; School cheerleading, on the other hand, has very few rules and very seldom do they tumble or stunt. Most schools are not allowed to stunt they’re what is referred to as, “ground bound.” People that do not know the facts about cheerleading have deemed cheerleading as not being a sport, they usually call these teams a spirit club and show disrespect towards these athletes. If people knew all of the facts and strengths of cheerleaders, they would consider cheerleading to be a sport just as much as your common sports.
Just like many other common sports, cheerleading has grueling practices and extensive training that these athletes must be able to endure. These athl...
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...tted their time and bodies to this activity.
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Ruddock, Rebecca. "Your Thoughts on Cheer." Personal interview. 12 Dec. 2013.
For competitive cheer you have to athletic if you want to be good. The cheerleaders are non stop tumbling, stunting, jumping, or dancing for more than two minutes. They never have a break in the routine that is pushed to the max with all the difficulty you can make and all of the legal things you can do in a routine. The sport
School set regulations and the coach then make their own rules. An important part of the "cheer look" are, of course the uniform, cheer bows. Hair, nails, and make up are required to be natural on most squads. The uniform is school color except on special occasions, such as Breast Cancer Awareness month. White, athletic, cheer shoes are on every foot ("Cheerleading Uniform Decoration"). Pom-poms, different sizes and color for different squads, are a part of almost every routine. School that have a historically black culture can be seen with slouch
Ironically, cheerleaders get the name of a “snob” or a “brat”, however a cheerleaders job is to bring positivity and spirit to their school. To be conceited or a bully is the complete opposite of what a cheerleaders job is; which means their primary responsibility is to pump up the student body for the big game or to get others involved and support school functions. Aside from the stereotype that cheerleaders are snobby, another assumption is that cheerleaders only hang out with other cheerleaders, that they are very exclusive. In films, cheerleaders are seen as the girls that always sit at the same lunch table and no one else is allowed to sit with them, or the ones that walk the halls in the same cluster while they laugh and gossip about other girls. A cheerleader is taught to be inclusive and to get others engaged in activities throughout the school, and if cheerleaders are pushing others away by being exclusive they are not doing their
Cheerleading is fun! Of course we cheerlead because it’s fun! From cheer camp to laughing on the sidelines, cheerleading is always a good time, especially with your friends. The memories made my cheerleaders whether they be from practices, games, or spirit activities (like decorating for senior night or baking treats for football players) are memories that will be cherished for a cheerleaders lifetime. Cheering is such a positive and happy experience because we are always doing something fun or accomplishing something new, like learning our new pyramid or mastering our routine. I get to get dressed up in my uniform with my bow in my hair and my white, red-track stained cheer shoes and not only cheer on my favorite football team but run around and cheer and stunt with a team of fun-loving girls and bring my community
One reason that I know that cheerleading is a sport is because you need a lot of upper body mussel and you also need to know how to do all of the things that they are doing to perform.
This recognition I received in 2015 sets me apart from other cheerleaders. Cheerleading is my passion and something I hope to never stop doing. I hope that once my time comes to an end, as a cheerleader I have the opportunity to be a head coach. Since been awarded I have noticed that more cheerleaders regardless of age, or level have come to me as their mentor seeking out advice on cheerleading. I am glad that others see me as someone they can come to, to seek advice, because I have been in their positions before at one time or another. I love to help out others in any way possible especially when it comes to something I am very passionate about. Recently, I have been able to become an assistant coach and I feel that being looked at as a mentor helps me tremendously, because they know that I am there to help them in as much as possible and that I know what I am talking about when it comes to cheerleading. I hope that by the time I graduate I will have impacted in a positive way all of their lives as
Movies portray cheerleaders as the popular girls that everyone likes and aspires to be. But when reality hits at Salem High School, it’s a completely different story. Cheerleading was taken as a joke by the other athletes and even students. It was considered a hobby, but to me it was a passion and something I worked hard to be. Being on the cheer squad in high school was difficult to deal with in school because we were constantly being snubbed by the other athletes and students in our school ever since we were kids in junior high which should not happen because everyone has the right to do what they love and they should not be judged for it being different than everyone else. It was always us versus them up until my junior year of high school when we finally earned the respect of our peers.
A study has found and proven that as a result of the amount of contact activity involved with cheerleading, “two thirds of very serious sports injuries suffered by girls in the United States” (Global Issues in Context). This inevitably highlights the rigors and risks cheerleaders endure as a result of their participation. In effect of cheerleading not being recognized as a sport and cheerleaders not being recognized as athletes, there is little awareness and support for the injuries cheerleaders encounter. Furthermore, according to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, “cheerleading is also among the top 20 sports with highest rate of head injuries” (Huffington Post). These head injuries include but are not limited to skull fractures, cervical spine injuries, brain injury, concussions, paralysis, and in severe cases, death. Nonetheless, as a result of cheerleading lacking recognition, injuries are typically underestimated despite their severity. It is important to consider the exertion a cheerleader must put in when completing a stunt. Being tossed or held in the air is the flyer who is then supported by two bases and a back spot. Despite being held up by a minimum of four people, one wrong move can result in the stunt collapsing, which can sometimes result in injury to both the
The average cheerleader dedicates 6-20 hours a week of their time to their training and conditioning. Cheerleaders are definitely considered athletes and deserve to be recognized for their hard work as an individual and as a team (Smith). A cheerleaders hard work emerges from their goals that are set in the beginning of each season. Competitive cheerleading is a sport that possesses multiple goals throughout the season. Goals are a set of things that you and your team are determined to reach throughout that period of time together. Behavioral expectations and skill accomplishments are just a few of the goals that can be set by a cheerleader in order to be successful. Goals are extremely important, because they help grow the structure of a team in a positive way (“Goal
A week before the banquet, the senior cheerleaders were given the task to write speeches about our coaches and our teammates.
By doing this, the school districts are portraying the message that cheerleading is a joke, and that it isn’t a real sport. It sets stereotypes for cheerleaders, and they have to work to overcome those stereotypes everyday. The school districts all over the US not classifying cheerleading as a sport are in the wrong. For several reasons, all school districts should recognize cheerleading as a sport.
...rtant physical fitness is for just an "activity." The fact that major injuries occur, even with proper training is incredible. The risks involved in cheerleading make this sport important and impossible to ignore.
Marrazzo, Amanda. "Cheerleading Caution Urged." Chicago Tribune. 12 Dec 2012: 1. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.
From an outsiders perspective one may see brainless and beautiful robots, which scream and perform neat tricks. This is not the case from the inside; cheerleading is so much more than that. Many people are under the impression that cheerleading is not a sport. I am the voice of reasoning that will let you in, and I will show you that cheerleading, in fact, is a sport. Cheerleading requires much physical demand from the body just as any other sport would. Cheerleading, in general, is a team effort. There are many sides to cheerleading, which make it a versatile sport. When it comes to cheerleading there’s more to it than what meets the eye.
Cheerleader: a person who is a member of a group (typically a group of young women) who shouts out special songs or chants to encourage the team and entertain the crowd during a game in sports like American football and basketball (Merriam-Webster). In the beginning, cheerleaders did what they were known to do. They lead cheers, with spirit and megaphones, for the crowd to follow. Then, as time went on, cheerleading evolved into co-ed teams, high-flying stunts, which brought about how cheerleaders are perceived today. In the past ten to fifteen years, cheerleading has grown with the number of people who participate and the quality of how they perform their skills. Cheerleading is a sport based on the physical and mental strength the athletes