Michayla
Berthiaume
ENGL
-023
Definition
Argument
1
October 2013
Should Cheerleading be considered a
Sport?
Fig.
1. The Oregon cheerleading team is preforming a basket toss, showing the danger
and skill that is involved in cheerleading (Photograph by Evans in Gregory).
Many people
think cheerleading is nothing but girls throwing their hands in the
air making up rhymes to cheer on a team. What most do not understand is how
much cheerleading has evolved since the first organized team in 1898. Cheering
on the sidelines of a football or basketball game is an activity, however
competitive cheerleading, such as all stars and competition
teams, should be considered a sport based on how challenging and
physically demanding it is to accomplish. A sport is defined as “an
activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of
rules or customs and is often undertaken competitively” (The free
dictionary.com). Under these very broad terms cheerleading fits the definition
of a sport perfectly.
The most common argument is that a real sport involves
playing a game and having physical contact with
their opponents.
Whether on a field or on a mat the best team always wins. In
football, unexpected things happen, but there are four quarters to score and
win. With cheerleading there is only 2 minutes and 30 seconds to perform the
absolute best, with no mistakes. There are no second chances, which makes cheerleading more of a challenge and creates more
pressure on the team, than any type of game. An article written by
Bill Pennington in the New York Times on cheerleading
injuries, states, “For decades, they stood by safe and smiling, a fixture on
America’s sporting sidelines. But today’s young cheerleaders, who perform
tricks once reserved for trapeze artists, may be in more peril than any female
athletes in the country” (“As cheerleaders Soar”). This
statement acknowledges the level of difficulty it takes to perform such
tasks, and gives insight on why cheerleaders should be given the respect they
deserve.
From 1982-2005, there have been 104 catastrophic
injuries sustained by female high school and college athletes, that range from
head to spinal injuries that sometimes result in death. The National Center for
Catastrophic Sports Injuries research reported that more than half of these
injuries were from cheerleading, and all the other sports combined did not
surpass cheerleading’s numbers (Pennington, 2007). This statistic proves
how physically demanding the sport is on its participants. Considering how
cheerleading is a no-contact sport, these are very high numbers that should cause concern to
those who participate in the sport. In addition, as the sport increases in
complexity, so do the numbers of those who become injured in competition.
The
athletes must be physically fit in order to perform at the very best of their
ability. They must also be able to lift fellow athletes, they need to be able
to do a wide variety of jumps, and they must be able to dance for a rigorous
two and a half minutes, without injury. Today, cheerleading involves skills
that require the strength of a football player, the grace of dancer and the
agility of a gymnast. Complex maneuvers are performed that challenge the limits of the body
(“Cheerleading as a Sport”). Not everyone is meant to be a cheerleader. Even
those individuals who think they are able to become a cheerleader still face
very demanding qualifications in maintaining their status as a cheerleader.
All hope for cheerleading came to a halt in 2009, when a
judge in Connecticut declared that cheerleading is not a sport. As
a result of the decision, Quinnipiac University took out woman’s volleyball and
replaced it with competitive cheerleading (History of Title IX). Angry members
of the volleyball team took the matter to court, and the judge ruled under the
conditions of Title IX that cheerleading did not qualify (History of Title IX).
Without knowing anything about cheerleading, he made an assumption that
cheerleading was still too disorganized and messy to be a part of the
organization of Title IX. From this one incident cheerleading is not recognized
in the legal world as a sport. Since then, coaches have been performing
trickery to bend to the rules of Title IX. Coaches began putting down names of
males that are not on the team to show “fairness” that cheerleading is not just
a woman’s sport. Sean Gregory of Time states,
“In fact, there’s a much easier way for colleges
to comply with Title IX without resorting to such absurd mischief. The adults
who run college sports need to show some common sense and recognize a
fast-growing, legitimate women’s sport right in front of their eyes” (“One Cure for Title IX Woes”). This statement is
very true in a sense that if cheerleading is recognized as a legitimate sport, and has a set
of rules to follow with consequences to breaking the rules, it might make for
it to be a safer, more organized sport.
In the simplest terms an athlete is a
person trained to compete in sports or exercises involving physical strength,
speed, or endurance (the free dictionary.com). By this definition anyone who
participates in a sport, or is on a team, is an athlete. Cheerleaders compete
against other teams, but it is not cheerleading’s sole purpose. The definition of a sport, according to The Women’s Sports Foundation is,
it must be a
physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming
the resistance of mass. “Contesting” or competing against/with an opponent. It
must be governed by rules that explicitly define the time, space, and purpose
of the contest and the conditions under which a winner is declared, and
finally, acknowledgement that the primary purpose of the competition is a
comparison of the relative skills of the participants (Lauchaire). Cheerleading fits
all of these rules except the last qualification states that the primary reason
for cheerleading’s existence is competition verses other teams or individuals
within a competition structure comparable to other ‘athletic’ activities.
Cheerleading’s primary purpose is to cheer on other sports teams and provide
school unity; competition comes second.
Since the first
organized team in 1898, teams all over the country have come a long way in
appearance, difficulty, and being primarily female dominated opposed to all
male teams (Wikipedia, History). Cheerleading is no longer known just as
cheering on football and sports teams, but as a dangerous and rigorous sport
involving dancing, gymnastics, and stunting. As shown in figure 1. Dangerous and
difficult stunts are now preformed that must be taken very seriously and done properly
so none of the cheerleaders get injured. Just like any other sport,
cheerleading takes commitment and dedication. In order to maintain their status
of a cheerleader, tumbling skills must be improved with every season which
involves many extra hours of practice on their own time. Cheerleading was
created for, and still has the reputation for its primary purpose being to unite people
on a particular sport, which is why it cannot be identified and recognized as a
sport, such as soccer or baseball.
Cheerleading being a
legitimate sport is an ongoing argument and organizations are working towards
changing the qualifications that define a sport. Cheerleading teams today cannot
be compared to the first organized teams in 1898. “Rah Rah” and “wah hoo” does
not exist anymore, even the complexity of sideline cheers has evolved. There is
no reason for cheerleading to not be qualified as a sport in the year 2013. Cheerleading
is going to continue to evolve even more than it already has in the years to
come. There should be exceptions for different types of cheerleading in order
to receive the respect and recognition cheerleaders deserve.
Works Cited
"Cheerleading as a Sport." AACCA.org.
The American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators, n.d. Web. 12 Sept.
2013. <https://www.aacca.org/content.aspx?item=Resources/Test.xml>.
"Cheerleading." Wikipedia.
Wikimedia Foundation, 09 Oct. 2013. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheerleading>.
Gregory, Sean. "Sports." Sports One Cure for Title IX Woes
Make Cheerleading a Sport Comments. Time Sports, 29 Apr. 2011. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
"History of Title IX." TitleIX.info.
Northridge Interactions, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2013.
<http://www.titleix.info/History/History-Overview.aspx>.
Lauchaire, Nicole. "Being a Cheerleader - Is
Cheerleading a Sport?" Varsity.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Sept.
2013. <http://www.varsity.com/event/1262/being-a-cheerleader-sport>.
Pennington, Bill. "As Cheerleaders Soar Higher, So
Do the Risks."The New York Times. The New York Times, 31 Mar. 2007.
Web. 17 Sept. 2013.
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