Kate
k so i do cheerleading and i get all the time that people think its not a sport so let me know what you think!
Answer
Collegiate cheerleading is hardest sport EVER. I should know because I compete in it.
I'm going to be completely honest with you and everything I am about to say is no lie. It's the harderst sport that you could ever participate in. I should know, because I belong to one of the most respected cheerleading squads in the nation. Take a look at this video, first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbo2HbME_Z4
That is a video of my team. Now, does that look easy? No, it is most definitely not. Cheerleading is really hard because you have to have the skills of a gymnast, the muscles of any athlete, the endurance of a runner, the flexibility of a contortionist and the drive of a 4X4 Jeep.
Doing a round off, back handspring arabian, through to a full is not easy and took me well over a year to get down. Once I thought I had the tumbling down, I had to work on STUNTING and BASKET TOSSES, which are extremely dangerous! Partner stunting is probably the hardest because you have to stay stiff, keep your balance AND hold up your own weight. A lot of people think the guy is doing the most work when he is NOT. When doing a simple backhandspring full-up to a heel stretch, yes this is considered simple (on my level of cheer), you have to line up with the guy, make sure you're stiff enough so that you can make it around int he rotation and work on that flexibility to nail the heel stretch!
Basket Tosses are the fun, yet still hard part about cheerleading. Doing double fulls int he air are really scary but fun once you get them, because you never know if your team mates are going to cath you or not, but thanks to the skill, you should have nothing to worry about. I remember when my coach asked me if I was up for learning a pike open full. REALLY HARD MOVE TO DO.
You know how long it took me to get that down? THREE WHOLE MONTHS, and I STILL sometimes don't get the full rotation down; cheerleading IS hard and anyone who thinks otherwise needs to come to my gym for a couple of days.
Yeah, gymnasts are flipping on a beam but what about us, huh? We're doing rewinds into ONE HAND, which is thinner than a beam. We're up WAY higher than any gymnast will ever get.
Pyramids are not easy, either! Ugh, it's just too much to type for me to explain. If you're in it, you know it's hard, if you don't, you have to SEE or at least try to do a move that.
Collegiate cheerleading is hardest sport EVER. I should know because I compete in it.
I'm going to be completely honest with you and everything I am about to say is no lie. It's the harderst sport that you could ever participate in. I should know, because I belong to one of the most respected cheerleading squads in the nation. Take a look at this video, first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbo2HbME_Z4
That is a video of my team. Now, does that look easy? No, it is most definitely not. Cheerleading is really hard because you have to have the skills of a gymnast, the muscles of any athlete, the endurance of a runner, the flexibility of a contortionist and the drive of a 4X4 Jeep.
Doing a round off, back handspring arabian, through to a full is not easy and took me well over a year to get down. Once I thought I had the tumbling down, I had to work on STUNTING and BASKET TOSSES, which are extremely dangerous! Partner stunting is probably the hardest because you have to stay stiff, keep your balance AND hold up your own weight. A lot of people think the guy is doing the most work when he is NOT. When doing a simple backhandspring full-up to a heel stretch, yes this is considered simple (on my level of cheer), you have to line up with the guy, make sure you're stiff enough so that you can make it around int he rotation and work on that flexibility to nail the heel stretch!
Basket Tosses are the fun, yet still hard part about cheerleading. Doing double fulls int he air are really scary but fun once you get them, because you never know if your team mates are going to cath you or not, but thanks to the skill, you should have nothing to worry about. I remember when my coach asked me if I was up for learning a pike open full. REALLY HARD MOVE TO DO.
You know how long it took me to get that down? THREE WHOLE MONTHS, and I STILL sometimes don't get the full rotation down; cheerleading IS hard and anyone who thinks otherwise needs to come to my gym for a couple of days.
Yeah, gymnasts are flipping on a beam but what about us, huh? We're doing rewinds into ONE HAND, which is thinner than a beam. We're up WAY higher than any gymnast will ever get.
Pyramids are not easy, either! Ugh, it's just too much to type for me to explain. If you're in it, you know it's hard, if you don't, you have to SEE or at least try to do a move that.
Cheerleading?
Julie M
What makes you think cheerleading qualifies as a sport?
Answer
Definition of a Sport
In a dictionary you may find the word "sport" defined as a "physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively." It is the last part of the definition "engaged in competitively" that makes considering cheerleading a sport difficult. According to the Women's Sports Foundation the following criteria has to be met to be considered a sport:
-A physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming the resistance of a mass
-A contest or competition against or with an opponent
Is governed by rules which explicitly define the time, space and purpose of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is declared
-The acknowledged primary purpose of the competition is a comparison of the relative skills of the participants
We have all heard the opinion that cheerleading is not a sport. The fact that we don't tackle our opponents to the ground for a ball does NOT mean that we are not athletes. We work just as hard as "real athletes" work. Our practices are just as intense and our competitions are even more intense then a basketball or football game. Our sport, unlike most, is not a selfish one. Part of being on a cheerleading squad is appreciating and cheering on our fellow athletes. The same athletes that insult OUR sport. What is it that qualifies an activity to be a sport? Is it the ball? No, wrestling is a sport and it doesn't contain a ball. Is it the sweat? Can't be the sweat, cheerleaders sweat just as much (but we hide it well!) Is it the practice? Nope, our practices are more intense than many other sports' practices. The audience? No, can't be that either, audiences at competitions out number those at many ball games! So WHAT is it?! Cheerleading takes just as much dedication and skill as any other sport, sometimes it takes more. The problem is that other athletes have no idea what it takes to be a cheerleader. We make it look so easy. We fly through the air with grace, we catch our teammates as though they are feathers floating from the sky. We throw tumbling passes that most people could barley dream of. They don't understand the technique and time it takes to master such skills. To us, cheerleading is not a game, like football or basketball, cheerleading is a way of LIFE. Cheerleading, more than any other sort, teaches important skills such as cooperating. Let's face it, if a cheerleading squad can't cooperate, stunts can't hit and people get hurt. Other sports ENCOURAGE team cooperation, and they may lose a game if they fail to cooperate;. but overall, no one gets hurt. What does a "sport" have that we don't? We practice, compete, have rules, go through training, sweat, fall, get hurt, and dedicate our lives to cheerleading...there is NO REASON why cheerleading should not be considered a sport.
Definition of a Sport
In a dictionary you may find the word "sport" defined as a "physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively." It is the last part of the definition "engaged in competitively" that makes considering cheerleading a sport difficult. According to the Women's Sports Foundation the following criteria has to be met to be considered a sport:
-A physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming the resistance of a mass
-A contest or competition against or with an opponent
Is governed by rules which explicitly define the time, space and purpose of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is declared
-The acknowledged primary purpose of the competition is a comparison of the relative skills of the participants
We have all heard the opinion that cheerleading is not a sport. The fact that we don't tackle our opponents to the ground for a ball does NOT mean that we are not athletes. We work just as hard as "real athletes" work. Our practices are just as intense and our competitions are even more intense then a basketball or football game. Our sport, unlike most, is not a selfish one. Part of being on a cheerleading squad is appreciating and cheering on our fellow athletes. The same athletes that insult OUR sport. What is it that qualifies an activity to be a sport? Is it the ball? No, wrestling is a sport and it doesn't contain a ball. Is it the sweat? Can't be the sweat, cheerleaders sweat just as much (but we hide it well!) Is it the practice? Nope, our practices are more intense than many other sports' practices. The audience? No, can't be that either, audiences at competitions out number those at many ball games! So WHAT is it?! Cheerleading takes just as much dedication and skill as any other sport, sometimes it takes more. The problem is that other athletes have no idea what it takes to be a cheerleader. We make it look so easy. We fly through the air with grace, we catch our teammates as though they are feathers floating from the sky. We throw tumbling passes that most people could barley dream of. They don't understand the technique and time it takes to master such skills. To us, cheerleading is not a game, like football or basketball, cheerleading is a way of LIFE. Cheerleading, more than any other sort, teaches important skills such as cooperating. Let's face it, if a cheerleading squad can't cooperate, stunts can't hit and people get hurt. Other sports ENCOURAGE team cooperation, and they may lose a game if they fail to cooperate;. but overall, no one gets hurt. What does a "sport" have that we don't? We practice, compete, have rules, go through training, sweat, fall, get hurt, and dedicate our lives to cheerleading...there is NO REASON why cheerleading should not be considered a sport.
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