OPINION
BY SHELBY TRUITT, Freshman
BLYTHEWOOD-- Competitive cheerleading: tumbling, stunts, jumps and a dance all packed into a 2 minute and 30 second routine. Does that make it a sport? Yes.
According to The Women’s Sports Foundation, a sport must be a physical activity which involves propelling mass through space or overcoming the resistance of mass. Stunting... check!
Contesting or competing against/with an opponent. Competition... check!
It must be governed by rules that explicitly define the time, space, and purpose of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is declared. Time limit, score sheets... check, check!
Cheerleading should be considered a sport based on all the qualifications but some people have other opinions.
“I think cheerleading is a sport because cheerleaders are athletic and push to their highest limits to complete a full routine,” allstar cheerleader, Ashlyn Gray said.
When 44 students were surveyed, 75% said that cheerleading was a sport, whereas 25% of students said cheer is not a sport.
“I do not think cheerleading is a sport because it requires no extra practice or conditioning,” freshman, Easton Catoe said.
According to CBS news, cheerleading is not officially considered a sport and causes less injuries than other sports but causes the most severe injuries.
Cheerleading is the fourth most popular high school sport according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.
Just like gymnasts, competitive cheerleaders are awarded points for difficulty, technique, creativity and sharpness. The more difficult a mount or a stunt, the sharper and more in-sync the motions, the better the score.
According to NCAA, cheerleading is considered a sport and the American Medical Association says cheerleading should be considered a sport because of its rigors and risks.
“What cheerleaders do is so unique and special. Not just anybody could go out on the mat and compete a 2 minute and 30 second routine. It requires you to be an athlete and it is much more than just dancing around in pretty uniforms,” Gray said.
While being a cheerleader, you constantly risk serious injury. Concussions are very common in cheer because of other athletes falling on your head or sometimes the flyers hitting their heads on the floor.
The American Academy of Pediatrics believes that cheerleading is more dangerous than football and over 400,000 cheerleaders would agree.
“I think there is no question that cheerleading should be considered a sport because we do everything other athletes do and take it to the extreme. I love this sport with everything I have and wouldn’t let anyone tell me it isn’t a sport,” Gray said.
Competitive cheerleading is a sport. It is a physical activity that is governed by rules under which a winner can be declared and its primary purpose is to compare the skills of participants.
Hopefully, cheerleading will become as well-known a sport as football and basketball, and even appear in the Olympics since cheerleaders are just as athletic and physically fit as those involved in the more accepted sports.
