Cheerleading Is Definitely a Sport
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Hmm... / Opinion

By Alexandra Smith, Journalist


F
or the last 10 years, there has been a very scholarly debate on whether or not cheerleading is a sport. Well, being an expert on basically everything; I decided I should clear this whole thing up.


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Cheerleading is absolutely a sport and here are just a few of the numerous reasons why.

Strategy

Like all recognized sports, cheerleading has big-time strategy. One very important aspect of cheering is knowing when to say certain things. For instance, they only use touchdown cheers when their team has made a touchdown. Knowing when to say the right thing during a game is kind of like debating. 





Another strategy that could be even more essential to successful cheering is knowing how to read your audience. Cheerleaders always know when the crowd is getting bored and they combat this by doing some moves. For instance, a popular move would be a little shimmy, which always wakes up the males in the stand even if their team has yet to score a point.

Trash Talk

Every athlete knows that sports involve a lot of trash talking. Cheerleaders could possibly be the worst trashers of them all because a part of their sport is calling out the other team. For example, if one of the teams comes over to the other side of the field they might use a classic cheer like: “We’re hot, you’re not so go light up in the parking lot. Yeahhhhhhhh! Wheeeeew!”

I have to say though that trash talking in cheerleading is bringing a new aspect to the term, because members even slander their own team mates! They are definitely one up on all the other sports.

Uniforms

Every recognized sport has uniforms and cheerleading is no exception. In fact, their uniforms could possibly be the most recognized of any sport. Uniforms are perfected to best suit the athlete’s needs. In cheerleading, the girls are put in super-duper short skirts that probably do not even fit the dress code at the school. But there is a valid reason for their size. Short skirts allow for greater movement than a long skirt.

The guys are put in baggy shorts or pants. There is a definite reason why girls are dressed in skirts and not pants. Remember when we were discussing how there are strategic moves in cheerleading. Well…some of those moves tend to reveal a little more than others and that can sometimes be pretty entertaining to all that testosterone in the crowd. The shirts also tend to be pretty small and I really can’t figure out how that would be of any use to the cheerleaders. So again, I have come to my own conclusion and deducted that again they are for the entertainment.

Popularity

Anyone who has been to high school knows that the jocks are usually pretty popular and party pretty hard. This goes the same for cheerleaders. Like the male athletes, the cheerleaders are also strangely popular among their fellow peers. I really can only attribute this to their unique and special athletic ability. They also have the great ability to party on and on and on. This has to be because of their superior build and strategic mind.

TV Competitions

Maybe the most compelling evidence of all is that there are televised competitions. Every sport has televised competitions and so does cheerleading. I can just imagine the whole family gathering around to watch the national championships of cheerleading. It is probably the equivalent of the Super Bowl. Now don’t try and deny it, I know you have watched one of these in awe. Well…maybe you haven’t; but there is always a first for everything.

Now if this isn’t enough evidence that cheerleading is a sport, I have to conclude that you are just a stubborn person that is unwilling to expand your horizons even though your belly keeps miraculously expanding. You see, I know the trials and tribulations of cheerleading because I was one! Yes I was, and I am damn proud of it. Not really, but only you and I know that.




AUTHOR: Alexandra Smith

TAGS: Opinion               

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anon.




anon. says on 2008-08-29 14:46:44 about
hey anon. Or whatever. Listen and listen good. there is to a direct competition. and we do play against the other teams cheerleaders. We compete against other cheerleaders for a score just like football players play against the other team to score a touchdown and score. sports are against two people where we compete against 20 to 30 competing to win a trophy and yeah that'd be a goal.






Peaceloveandcheer11




Peaceloveandcheer11 says on 2008-08-29 14:36:02 about cheerleading is a sport
I agree with like everybody cheerleading is a sport. I have practices just as long as football five times a day and for 2 or 2 1/2 hours. We run a mile and go to the wait room. And we work just as hard or harder then other sports in my school just to gain respect from our peers. We have to work out to gain the muscle to throw a 100 person up in the air 20 feet. You don't need a ball for a sport. Swimming is a sport. There's no ball. Gymnastics and track wresting so why not cheerleading. Hate to tell all the haters who say we don't do anything but cheerleading is the sport that most people get hurt jet like football. So get out of your little fantasy world and relize cheerleading is a sport.






Cheerleadingrocksmyworld




Cheerleadingrocksmyworld says on 2008-08-13 19:56:44 about Yes it is and dont you forget it
wow well you say we dont have a ball well swimming doesnt have a ball and thats a sport
you say we dont compete against anyone well umm YES WE DO
we do not compete agaisnt ourselves we compete agaisnt other teams and we copete to win the trophy
we have rules and boundrys just like soccer football baseball swimming and a whole bunch of others
also we are talking about competitive cheerleading not cheering at a game
you say a sport needs direct conflic well for your info we yell at all teams so hahaha
and to ever said that cheerleaders wouldn't run laps HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA we do that pluse our whole work out. do you see the muscles and abs that cheerleaders have well you should loook also if you are going to make fun of our uniform than make fun of swimmers theirs is just as reveling as ours but we need the skirts cause we need to be airodinamic and we are not just a feminam sport we are masculin too so if you cant tell me why cheerleading isnt a sport with a LOGICAL defination well hahahahaha and if you say something about cheerleading not being a sport . . .

trust me. . .

one cheerleader. . . . no . . . . all the cheerleaders will have a better reason why that answer is false







CHEERROXMYSOX




CHEERROXMYSOX says on 2008-06-02 18:34:10 about The Difference
I Just Started Cheering for a Competition Cheer Squad, there's a difference between that and high school cheer. High School Cheerleaders just stand around and yell they act omg! They aren't really "serious" about it.
Competition takes ALOT of strength, in other sports you lift weights well we lift people. In Competition you wear short skits in order to do stunts and jumps, you wear a little top so when you try and do a Backhand Spring or a Back Tuck your shirt doesn't go in your face. Cheer IS A SPORT! We can get hurt, and if your a backspot/base it's a possibility you can be kicked in the face, lets see you hold a handstand for a few minutes. So i think that high school cheerleaders are stupid and that's not a sport, but competition IS!






Cheery girl




Cheery girl says on 2008-05-28 23:10:13 about cheerleading
Screw all you people who think cheer is not a sport.It is. stupid haters that are jealous cause they cant be like us and do what we do






cheer chick




cheer chick says on 2008-05-21 16:52:17 about cheerleading is a sporrt
yea cheerleading is definatly a sport we run we lift weight and people we have amazing abs and we defnatly work a lot harder and longer than any football team i know i dont see the football basketball or other sports team up at there school or gym till 11:30-11:45 getting ready for a pep rally and the back up at the school at 6:45 the next morning and all the other sports you dont have to look cute while doing it cheerleading you have to constantly smiling even if somthing bad just happend in your life and i dont see any other athletes going out to play their game with a concusion or sprain or any other injury cheerleaders will cheer no matter what






Football24




Football24 says on 2008-05-21 14:19:04 about Cheerleading
cheerleading is not a fucking sport. it doesnt have a ball you dont hit any one. it not a sport. cheerleaders are just something for the football players to look at.






cheerleading




cheerleading says on 2008-05-19 17:04:04 about cheerleading:is a sport!
Oh and anon said its 2 people going towards a goal it is. There are probably 20 different teams going towards one goal :to win the competition!






cheerleading




cheerleading says on 2008-05-19 17:02:22 about cheerleading:is a sport!
Cheerleading a sport? What makes a sport? A ball? nope, wrestling doesnt have a ball and its a sport. Sweat? Nope we sweat just as much or more during our practices. Practices, audiences? Nope, not that either. We practice 2 hours a day 4 days a week, 4 weeks a month and 12 months a year, and there is often more people attending a cheer comptition then a ball game. We tumble, jump, scream, cheer, stunt and more. Flyers have to have flexibility and strength, and bases need ot have strength to be able to lift flyers and throw them up more then 10-15 feet in the air. We also need to have strength to get our pikes toe touches herkies and more jumps high. Not to mention our tumbling. You thing its easy doing a back handspring? Why don't you tr yit. Not to mentin a back tuck! If you can't do a backbend kickover, not to mention just a backbend, good luck trying to do what we cheerleaders can do!

So next time you thing cheerleaidng isnt a sport, think again!






anon.




anon. says on 2008-05-14 12:02:46 about
im a cheerleader and i deffently think this is a sport.

we lift people 30 ft in the air, jump, tumble, dance, and scream. We have to murge everything into only 2:30sec. you think that football is hard? if football was any harder it would be called cheerleading.. [:






K10




K10 says on 2008-05-13 15:40:16 about
Okay, so I’ve been cheering for a long time now. I cheered on my varsity high school sideline team for all of high school. And I’m gonna have to say that I don’t think that part of cheerleading is a sport… don’t’ get me wrong. It’s difficult, and I think it largely depends on the high school in question to say how much effort goes in to it, and what skills are performed. But there are way too many high school teams out there that can barely get a girl up in to an extension and that only have one or two girls on the team that can tumble. And I’m not trying to diss anyone’s team or anything… I’m just saying hat if all you’re doing is yelling and kicking on the sideline in support of another sports team… that’s not exactly what I would call a sport…
BUT… competition cheerleading is entirely different. I was also on my school’s competition team as well as an all star team all throughout high school… and anyone who doesn’t view that as a sport is entirely ignorant. It involves constant and strenuous practice as well as being in shape in every aspect of fitness. Cheerleading involves every part of your body. Your abs have to be strong to jump high, legs and arms to lift people, endurance to make it through routines, coordination for dancing, flexibility in general, as well as shoulder strength and balance. And for those of you who say you don’t get points in cheerleading you’re wrong… it’s a judged sport just like gymnastics and ice skating or whatever else you guys want to compare it too.
As for stereotypes about cheerleaders… I mean every girls sports team is going to have people that gossip or try to show off… it’s high school… it happens. And there are plenty of girls that join just to get a certain reputation. But in my experience if you’re on a challenging enough team… those girls usually can’t hang, unless they actually have talent of course. And cheerleaders aren’t all dumb… I cheered and I got a scholarship to Virginia Tech, another girl on the squad is going to UVA… etc.
And for anyone that doesn’t believe competitive cheerleading is a sport… go to youtube and type in allstar cheerleading routine and see what comes up… then try to do half the stuff that you saw and maybe you will get the idea…






xxcutiepiexx




xxcutiepiexx says on 2008-05-12 19:53:37 about cheerleading is a sport
anon:hmm...do i hear.JELOUSY.your an F**K head too.ok smart one theres not direct competion in oce skating or physical for that matter. and it does not have 2 or more people cometing for a common goeal unless its pairs,but thats diff.anyways iceskating is a sport and it has no direct competion. maybe i should give you some advice.think before you speak because you totally have made a fool of yourself just letting you know because no matter what you say it is a sport.think about iceskating nno DIRECT contact and giess what its in the OLYMPICS dumbass






xxcutiepiexx