The newest sport?
Photo
Badger High School cheerleaders perform a pyramid stunt at the state cheerleading competition in February. Coaches say cheerleading requires more athleticism—and more safety precautions—than decades ago. At the state competition, squads perform on a matted floor with college cheerleaders acting as spotters.
Photo
Badger High School cheerleaders perform a liberty stunt at the state cheerleading competition in February. Coach Leslie Abruzzo said the ideal practice and competition space would be equipped with a spring floor and mats, the same kind of space used by gymnasts.
Area cheerleading coaches say the broken arm of a Beloit Memorial High School cheerleader shows the need for better regulation that would come with making cheerleading a sanctioned sport.
The Beloit girl’s family has filed a notice of claim against the school district, saying the cheerleading squad’s practice space isn’t safe.
The claim states that despite repeated requests from coaches, the school district did not provide the squad with floor mats for practices, which were held in the gym, cafeteria, classrooms and hallways.
Leslie Abruzzo, the varsity cheerleading coach at Badger High School in Lake Geneva, said she was “absolutely appalled” at the lack of rules governing cheerleading when she arrived at Badger three years ago after coaching cheerleading in Illinois for five years.
She said she watched other squads in her conference perform illegal stunts. High school squads can build stunts no more than two cheerleaders high, Abruzzo said, but some squads were doing stunts three high.
“In Illinois, if that rule is broken, a squad is disqualified,” she said. “There’s no penalty if you break those rules in Wisconsin.”
She said she holds her squad to the rules because the rules are designed for the cheerleaders’ safety. But it’s not always easy.
“When we go to games, and they see those things, and the crowd is cheering … my girls are upset,” Abruzzo said.
If the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletics Association sanctioned cheerleading as a sport—like the organization does with football, basketball and baseball—cheerleading “absolutely would be safer,” Abruzzo said. The organization could set safety guidelines and establish requirements for coaches’ education, she said.
Because the WIAA does not provide a state tournament series in cheerleading, it is not a WIAA-sanctioned sport. Instead, the WIAA has endorsed the Wisconsin Association of Cheer and Pom Coaches state tournament series.
“We work very closely with WACPC, and they advocate within their membership for safety and for coaches’ education,” said Doug Chickering, executive director of the WIAA.
He said the WIAA provides school districts with materials from the National Federation of State High School Associations.
But Abruzzo said the WIAA does nothing for cheerleading squads or coaches.
“I’ve never gotten anything from the WIAA,” she said. “I don’t think my athletic director has either.”
Abruzzo said coaches want a safe place for their squads to practice and compete.
The ideal space, she said, would be equipped with a spring floor and mats, the same kind of space in which gymnasts practice and compete.
The space would be large, well lit and free from distraction.
But perhaps more important is for school districts to provide coaches with opportunities for professional development. And for many, that requires a shift in thinking.
“(Cheerleading) is rarely just standing on the sideline and cheering for a team,” said Julie Jacobson, the District 5 representative for the Wisconsin Association of Cheer and Pom Coaches.
She said it’s more than that. Cheerleading includes jumping, tumbling and stunting. Cheerleading is a sport, she said.
“There is so much athleticism involved,” Jacobson said.
Abruzzo said a cheerleading squad can be as athletic as the coach wants it to be.
“For me, I want a group of athletes who tumble and stunt,” she said. “Other coaches might just want them to do the dancing, cheering, yelling … not the type of acrobatics and athleticism like we do.”
A high school cheerleader herself in the 1970s and now a coach, Jacobson has seen cheerleading change from activity to sport, she said.
“Cheerleading … has moved into the 21st century,” she said. “Not everyone’s thinking has.”
Squads and coaches first need to gain respect within their own schools, Jacobson said. School districts and athletic directors need to take cheerleading seriously.
Abruzzo said she’s been vocal with the athletic director at Badger High School to provide her with all the training and certification available to cheerleading coaches.
Being certified means she understands the basic elements of tumbling and stunting and has learned the drills and conditioning techniques necessary to help cheerleaders build their muscles to perform.
“It’s like becoming a teacher,” she said.
Jacobson said “it’s in the schools’ best interest” to hire qualified coaches and provide them with professional development.
“A well-trained coach is important,” she said.
Apr 6, 2008 at 1:23 p.m.
Suggest removal
What about the academic sports? Those paper cuts can be wicked.
Apr 5, 2008 at 7:27 a.m.
Suggest removal
I just have four words: "BRING IT ON" movies.
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:49 p.m.
Suggest removal
Next thing ya know the batton twirlers and flag bearers will be demanding recognition lolol
Apr 4, 2008 at 8:53 p.m.
Suggest removal
Fifteen years ago I was a high school cheerleader and cheerleading was trying to be accepted as a sport then. Geez, we've come a long way. **eyes rolling**
I suffered three concussions during my cheerleading career and other squad members suffered torn ACL's along with other injuries. We really didn't have a coach to speak of and practiced wherever we could find a space with a high enough ceiling. We attended camps and there were individual and team competitions. Cheerleading has come a long way since then and it's as much if not more of a sport than golf, baseball, curling, or synchronized swimming.
Apr 4, 2008 at 6:33 p.m.
Suggest removal
why does it need to be called a sport. seems it just needs regulations for safety purposes and leave it at that.
Apr 4, 2008 at 6:21 p.m.
Suggest removal
Come on... if cheer leading were to be a sport that would degrade the term "sport". Ok I'll admit some cheer leading you see on TV (ESPN) involves actually gymnastics but all the high school cheerleaders I've seen are nothing more than wannabes. Any Other high school athletes work twice as hard as the cheerleaders work. Also, seriously the injuries? Please, the worst injury I've witnessed/heard about was a cheerleader at Craig who "broke" a finger and it was during practice while they were "walking" and she accidentally ran into someone.
*The comments I've made above are in regard to high school cheerleaders... Because some of the stunts and things I've seen professional/competitive cheerleaders do are challenging and require actual hard work and dedication.
Apr 4, 2008 at 5:52 p.m.
Suggest removal
I'm not getting into the whole "cheerleading's not a sport" argument, but I do feel that people need to give more respect to the cheerleaders. As a former high school cheerleader, I worked hard for my team, just as any other athlete would. We did have to practice in the hallways, on the grass and when we could on the wrestling mats. I suffered injuries, but that's a risk with any sport. We worked to perfect the stunts, so that mats wouldn't be needed at the games. As for the uniforms, I was a larger cheerleader, and I didn't see a problem with the uniforms.
I feel that suggesting that the cheerleaders lose weight because it will improve their health, is just telling these girls that they are overweight and encouraging them to be skinny. Why create more problems?
Apr 4, 2008 at 5:49 p.m.
Suggest removal
What do you mean that they need to lose weight?
Cheerleaders need muscles, they work out like any other athlete, training and lifting weights. The only light one they need is the one they throw. That was a very sexist remark!
Apr 4, 2008 at 4:44 p.m.
Suggest removal
As a parent of a high school cheerleader, and college cheerleader, the happiest moment of my parenting days is when my daughter said "Mom, I'm sick of getting hurt from stunts that have gone bad. I'm quiting". Something has got to be done with these kids and their cheerleading. In our school's case there was no supervision, the adult leaders were leaving it up to the "captains" (other students) to decide what was safe and what was not. While the adult supervision goes and does something else. It's a catch-22. Cheerleading was a great activity for my daughter, and very fun to watch. However, it posed alot of pain and worry for everyone involved. Some kind of rules/guidelines have to be implemented. As bad as it sounds, I hope that the cheerleader featured in this article knows that she's a very lucky girl to be able to say that she had a broken arm. Other girls have not been so lucky. The injuries are catostrophic. It's just sad.
Apr 4, 2008 at 3:34 p.m.
Suggest removal
I dabbled in gymnastics for a while. We used spring boards, and spring floors. Padding here, padding there. I don't, and never really did, see a difference between cheerleaders & gymnasts. (BTW-gymnasts leotards are minimal compared to a cheerleaders!) They are both performing similar routines (floor), however done in groups. I am sure a majority of the reason that cheerleaders don't perform on mats/ padded flooring at said sporting venues is because it's time-consuming to drag out all the mats & get them ready to perform on. But if time was available, I bet something like that would be brought out for them.
Apr 4, 2008 at 12:19 p.m.
Suggest removal
Although the WIAA does endorse WACPC as the "official" regional and state competition for cheer and dance, they are one of the few organizations that holds teams to strict guidelines on what is legal in a routine and what is not for safety reasons. I agree that there should be rules that need to be followed, but I would hope that most coaches would exercise common sense. As a former coach, I certainly enforce rules at all times to keep my girls safe. The issue I have with cheer and dance becoming WIAA sanctioned is that we would lose our summer season. Many teams attend camps that require extensive preparation over the summer and also attend competitions. This would be entirely lost. These camps are the avenue through which teams are invited to compete at Nationals through UCA and UDA that are televised on ESPN.
I personally would never want to be sanctioned by the WIAA if that is something that we would lose. I would hope that coaches would use their heads when it comes to safe routines and practices. I realize that most teams do not have ideal practice spaces, but you can definitely work with what you have in order to maintain a safe environment.
Apr 4, 2008 at 12:03 p.m.
Suggest removal
Hey futureteacher....ease off on us poker players. In retirement, I compete against my fellow poker athletes daily. I've got to go do my chip shuffling exercise now. See ya!
Apr 4, 2008 at 11:45 a.m.
Suggest removal
In Janesville it cost a $50.00 athletic fee to participate in cherleading and poms. That makes them a sport! As much as I hate to write that.
Apr 4, 2008 at 11:25 a.m.
Suggest removal
A broken arm and a pending lawsuit for a school district fits my description of doom and gloom. I hope that conditions improve for the cheerleaders as they also sound rather dismal. Cheerleaders are every bit as important as as the people playing the game and they deserve the same consideration.
Apr 4, 2008 at 11:19 a.m.
Suggest removal
Whether it's a sport or not is one debate I am staying out of. However, I go to sporting events to watch the event and usually don't give much thought to the cheerleaders. Not to be critical (or satirical), but from reading the descriptions of the formations, etc., that the cheerleaders do I keep envisioning a three-ring circus with cheerleaders circling the center ring (where the actual sporting event is taking place). I do have one question: If it's such an injury-prone sport, why aren't mats used at the games? (Maybe they are and I just haven't noticed.)
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:47 a.m.
Suggest removal
Futureteacher- Cheerleading competitions have been broadcast on ESPN for many years now. I remember watching them as a child and I am in my late 20's. Cheerleading is a good SPORT for girls because it promotes teamwork and teaches kids structure. I am thankful that I did for 10 yrs.
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:30 a.m.
Suggest removal
Irish...go away. It's thinking like yours that keeps activities/sports like cheerleading in the dark ages.
As far as a slow news day, this is the kind of thing a mid-size community newspaper should report on. If you want all gloom and doom, all the time, read the national rags. In commuities like ours, what goes on in our schools is just as important as national news. Thanks for being so closed-minded.
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:29 a.m.
Suggest removal
Lets see . . . add it to the ESPN sports list. Cheerleading,power eating, spelling bee, billiards, poker . . . .
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:25 a.m.
Suggest removal
BTW--Irish--cheer/pom skirts are probaly longer and more modest as a whole than the minis you can pucrchase right off the rack at Hollister and other teen clothing retailers. Skirts usually come in 14-16-18-20 inch length. Hollister? 10.
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:22 a.m.
Suggest removal
Julie Jacobson is right on. I have known Julie for many years and she is a true asset to the WACPC. Doug Chickering, however, is leaving out a crucial element in stating that the WIAA works closely with the WACPC. That is a recent development in the world of cheer and pom; within the last 5 years. It's not mandatory that a school belong to the WACPC, the governing body over cheer/poms therfore leaving cheer/poms virtually unregulated except for competitions (which again are not mandatory and not all venues follow the WACPC or NFHS rules). The other problem is that the show-stopping "WOW" moves and stunts are often illegal. While he has since retired, there was a pom coach at one of the Janesville high schools who repeatedly allowed illegal moves by his squad; a trademark move if you will. It was no wonder girls on that squad frequently had torn hammys and other sprains. And, it's no wonder girls are becoming injured, despite well trained and informed coaches, when they are FORCED to practice in cramped hallways, classrooms, parking lots and other unsafe surfaces. They work as hard as other athletes do, and conform to the same co-curricular code as other athletes and participants. Shame on the school districts, and athletic directors for not giving them the same courtesy and respect that is afforded to other athletes, sports and clubs. The fieldhouse at PHS speaks volumes for this.....
Apr 4, 2008 at 10:02 a.m.
Suggest removal
Irish's comment makes the case in point:
“Cheerleading … has moved into the 21st century,” (Jacobson) said. “Not everyone’s thinking has.”
Apr 4, 2008 at 9:40 a.m.
Suggest removal
High kicking in a mini-skirt? What are you 100 years old? Cheerleading is a sport. The stunts they do are very hard and require alot of practice. As for there uniforms, I see nothing wrong with them, they are not really much different than what volleyball players wear.
Apr 4, 2008 at 9:20 a.m.
Suggest removal
They want respect?
How about not high-kicking in a mini-skirt.
Must be a slow news day to have to publish this dreck.
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.