Cheerleading in the UK
- Kirsty Robinson
- Feb 11, 2014
- 3 min read
‘Cheerleading is an athletic sport.’ This is a statement that some unfortunately may not be familiar or comfortable with, but that’s about to change. For years there has been an unfair stereotype connotated with Cheerleading. However, it is becoming rapidly popular amongst younger people in the UK, with independent groups as well as University teams, there are males and females that are competing up and down the country from as young at 4! The American form of cheerleading has inspired many across the nation, particularly University students hitting their mid 20’s, as many University teams compete annual competitions.
Our very British unease with cheerleading may stem from the displays seen alongside American football games in the US. I’m here to you re evaluate cheerleadings purpose. Cheer is claimed to be the fastest growing sport in the world, it is played in 82 countries, with men and women competing in teams before judges with fast-moving, complex acrobatic routines. It blends sports disciplines including tumbling, gymnastics and dance. This sport demands strength, flexibility, lightening quick footwork and, most of all, dedication and teamwork.. but it’s all worth it!
Cheerleaders typically have been portrayed as promiscuous girls, in movies stretching in front of the boys, shaking it on the basketball court and fooling around campus, when in reality this is not true and there are many males that partake in the sport! The majority of uniforms are long sleeve, skin covering sports wear, unlike the crop tops and overly revealing uniform you might imagine. Cheerleading captain Sophie at Coventry University mentioned, “We really are not in it for the attention of boys, and trust me we are not gossiping and stretching and bending over in our short skirts. We are there to train.”
Sophie: “I can say though, that none of us are paying the smart kids to do our homework for us, we each work hard and are dedicated equally to our studies and training.”
Although it may be assumed that Cheerleaders spend every second of every hour with as the “cheer sisters,” it really isn’t like that – ever. Sophie expands, “Don’t get me wrong: I’m friends with everyone on the squad , I’m the Captain, but, we are just like teams are for any other sport – we don’t travel in a pack.”
As University students Sophie explained they rarely are all in the same place at the same time other than practices, games, and competitions, “we are at University, and each have very different priorities and responsibilities. We aren’t sheep. We don’t walk in a cluster through the hallways pushing kids into lockers, and we don’t start battles with the other schools cheerleaders. We do our own thing like any normal person.” The aim of their team is to meet other cheerleaders at University and/or at competitions, ‘we all cheer each other on, because we are all there for their love of the sport. Of course we all want to win though!"
We asked Sophie about her take on the Uniform Stereotype, do they wear their Uniforms everywhere like on TV? “This always makes me laugh, when I’m watching “Glee” and the ‘Cheerio’s’ are literally in their same uniform every single day. How many of the same uniform do they have? Do they wear the same one everyday, if so how often do they wash them? This stereotype is just not true at all, we’ll just wear of normal clothes in the day time, and gym gear to train. We only wear our uniforms at competitions!”
Ultimately, cheer is demanding, but it’s not a chore… it’s a choice. “We all love it, we want to be good at it because it’s really fun. So training four days a week is something to look forward to!”
If you would like to find your local cheerleading team, visit: http://www.localcheerteams.com
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