Competitive cheerleading is an acrobatic team-based sport that focuses on stunting, jumps, dance, performance, and occasionally tumbling.
Competitive cheerleading is when cheer squads compete against each other at a competition. At a typical cheerleading competition, teams perform a two-and-a-half-minute routine that include stunts and jumps.
Teams are judged by a panel of cheerleading experts on difficulty and execution. The International Olympic Committee officially recognized Cheerleading as a sport in 2021 and the goal is to get into the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Cheer had changed a lot in the last couple of decades, from the sidelines of high school football games to pyramids and gravity defying stunts.
There are huge differences between Sideline and Competition cheer. Sideline cheering runs the duration of a football season where practice typically starts in July and ends no later then early December depending on how deep a team goes in the playoffs.
Competition cheering requires more time and dedication. Teams are expected to execute higher leveled stunts.
When asked about what she enjoys most about cheerleading, Aubrey Vance cheerleader from Coral springs high says “I enjoy the thrill of it. I enjoy stunting and doing it with my best friends.”
Another cheerleader from Coral Springs High, Makenzi Drakes says “I enjoy the sisterhood of it. I love being able to cheer with all my friends and form bonds with people.”
Cheerleading is a sport that includes a lot of teamwork and team building. It includes a lot of hard work and exercise. Cheerleaders train just as hard as any other athlete. They spend the same amount of time running routines to make sure they are executed perfectly.
Coach of the Coral Springs High Amanda Mortimer was asked how she about coaching the team and she said “I feel very honored and thankful that I am able to step into a head coach position and work with so many talented athletes and mold even beginner athletes. Competition cheer continues to evolve, and it only gets more elite and harder as the years go on so it is very exciting to be able to learn new skills and be able to teach it to these girls and push them to a level of athleticism that isn’t often seen.
There are very many levels of cheerleading. Cheerleaders work tirelessly to train and execute a routine with precision.
To achieve success in cheer you must train inside and outside of practice. As the difficult of stunts increase so does the amount of practice you must put in.
Overall, Competitive Cheer is not a sport to underestimate. Just being inside of the gymnasium even as a spectator is a nerve racking experience.
The CSHS Competitive Cheerleading team ended the season placing eleventh in the state out of twenty teams.
