Cheerleading: Sport or Activity

[catsbackr]

From the American Heritage Dictionary:

 

"Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively. "

 

I'm going with Sport on this one.

[warhawks]

Cheerleading is a sport! Long hours of training and you have to be very athletic to do the things they do! You also have to be in excellent physical condition.

[redbirdfan]

I totally agree with the previous post.. CHEERLEADING is DEFINATELY a SPORT /thumb[1].gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":thumb:" border="0" alt="thumb[1].gif" /> You've GOT to be in shape to do what those young ladies do.. I'm very impressed what those ladies do during the state tournaments in the BORO with all the tumbling and everything else /ohmy.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":o" border="0" alt="ohmy.gif" /> THey're AWESOME!! I guess the reason why they have the State competitions in the fall is because that's when the cheerleaders really know they're routines from all the summer camps and late night practice sessions they're involved in..

 

Cheerleaders make a huge sacrifice during the sports season because they don't have time to go hang out and "socialize" with their friends because they're always rehearsing routines and getting ready for the big games..

 

Hats off to the Cheerleaders -- GO CHEERLEADERS!! /flower.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":flower:" border="0" alt="flower.gif" />

[Lc68]

SPORT all the way!

football players= throwing a light ball...and running.

Soccer players= kick a ball through a goal.

basketball players=dribble a ball

CHEERLEADER=LIFT 100+ pound people...and compete nonstop with tumbling stunts and much much more.

therefore def. a sport

 

 

Whoever wrote this wrote it with all the logical prowess of a 16 year old blonde. I want to see cheerleaders actually get out there and try to put pads on and play a game of football the RIGHT, REAL way. Our school had a powderpuff football game scheduled for the cheerleaders and were going to actually play in pads, but the girls wouldn't do it because it was "too hot" and the pads were "too heavy." The point is that, yes, competitive cheerleading may very well be a sport, as well as band, but to put it on the same plane with the major sports is a travesty. I bet that given a few hours to learn a routine, a football player could jump around and lift "100+" pound people at least similarly to a cheerleader. However, you would have to go to the land of the amazons to find ANY cheerleader that could compete at football. "Throwing a light ball....and Running" for miles and getting smeared into the ground by 300+ POUND PEOPLE. Unequal sports do not deserve equal treatment. I rest my case.

[ksgovols]

Well, I agree you'd get laughed out of the weight room by any high school football player if you couldn't lift 100+ pounds and any 'sport' can be broken down into the most simplest of terms, i.e. 'wearing a short skirt and doing warm up exercises' or whatever. And breathing is a physical activity. You burn calories sleeping.

 

Why does it have to be a competition? Why do cheerleaders care one way or the other what the ball sports think of them? Self esteem? Get over yourselves. If you enjoy doing it, keep on doing it. Why does it have to be validated by your peers?

 

My ONLY complaint about cheerleaders is when they sacrifice cheerleading at games to go to a competition. Same with the band.

[bellgo]

Why does it have to be a competition? Why do cheerleaders care one way or the other what the ball sports think of them? Self esteem? Get over yourselves. If you enjoy doing it, keep on doing it. Why does it have to be validated by your peers?

 

My ONLY complaint about cheerleaders is when they sacrifice cheerleading at games to go to a competition. Same with the band.

 

 

I like your first comment. I don't think it should matter what other people think (including myself), whether they think it's a sport of not.

 

Competitive cheerleading is a sacrifice and a huge commitment. There is lot hard work that's put into choreographing a routine, working stunting/tumbling skills, and fundraising. Plus, cheering at games and academics are top priorities. Lots and lots of time!! Going to a national competition may require some squads to miss games (especially with UCA Nationals). However, I don't think it should be that much of a sacrifice that cheering at games be put on the back burner. Plus, not all cheer squads are competitive.

[ruthlessdcfan08]

Cheering is an activity

[fbfan51]

Cheering is an activity

 

 

Wow, how profound!

[fbfan51]

I bet that given a few hours to learn a routine, a football player could jump around and lift "100+" pound people at least similarly to a cheerleader. However, you would have to go to the land of the amazons to find ANY cheerleader that could compete at football.

 

I rest my case.

 

 

 

This is a typical comment from someone not familliar with competitive cheerleading. Yes, it's true. Football is designed for certain types of athletes. Not every male football player can be an offensive lineman. Does that mean he's not an athlete? An offensive lineman probably wouldn't make a great receiver or kicker. Does that mean he's not an athlete? Just because different sports require different athletic skill sets doesn't mean they aren't legimate. Since cheerleaders aren't physically equipped to play football, therefore they aren't athletes? It's not about how much someone weighs, or if they wear pads that determines if they participate in a sport.

 

Come on, surely you can do better than that!

[Lc68]

This is a typical comment from someone not familliar with competitive cheerleading. Yes, it's true. Football is designed for certain types of athletes. Not every male football player can be an offensive lineman. Does that mean he's not an athlete? An offensive lineman probably wouldn't make a great receiver or kicker. Does that mean he's not an athlete? Just because different sports require different athletic skill sets doesn't mean they aren't legimate. Since cheerleaders aren't physically equipped to play football, therefore they aren't athletes? It's not about how much someone weighs, or if they wear pads that determines if they participate in a sport.

 

Come on, surely you can do better than that!

 

 

Never did I say they weren't athletes. I was merely responding to the cheerleadersupremacist that was running around this board. They are athletes. But the 2 sports aren't equal.

[ksgovols]

Never did I say they weren't athletes. I was merely responding to the cheerleadersupremacist that was running around this board. They are athletes. But the 2 sports aren't equal.

 

 

 

I think that's the crux of the debate Lc68. Equality. If TSSAA would call cheerleading a sport and they had sanctioned competitions, they'd be equal as far as Title IX is concerned. NCAA would offer scholarships. Cheerleading would be a way of getting these girls (and some guys) college education payed for. It would be a way of balancing the scholarships that are given to the guys on the football side to conform with Title IX. I like that line of reasoning.

 

Other than that............who cares? If you can play Tiddly Winks and get paid to do it or get your education funded, then I'd say that Tiddly Winks is a sport. It's a physical activity that's fun to participate in and involves hand to eye coordination. Whatever. Until they start handing out scholarships that apply towards balancing the football scholarships..........it's a moot point as far as I'm concerned.

[DarrenFsDevilDawgs]

ACTIVITY