Quinnipiac University Cheerleading Trial

Cheerleading has started to receive support from people interested each year, it's becoming more noticeable and appreciated over time. Unfortunately, this growing sport has still not received that approval of some other athletes as well. Somewhat recently in my home state of Connecticut there was a trial involving this very issue at Quinnipiac University. For a briefing on the case for those unaware, it has to do with the university’s volleyball members suing the school for having put money into the cheerleading department. I have done some research on this case and the main issue of argument that this case is based off of is the “Title IX” document, which defines standards for men and women’s athletic sport teams. “ ‘Because QU receives federal financial assistance, its athletic program is subject to Title IX and QU must comply with its requirements,’ the volleyball players said in their suit.” (Goldman). In this case there is strong disagreement with the cheerleading squad and against Quinnipiac University. The volleyball team argues that they discriminate against women’s athletics. If so, then why would they be so supportive of the cheerleading team? The cheerleading team at the university argues that this issue should not be directed at them just because the university helped their department. The cheerleading squad at Quinnipiac University gives back to the university by saving the school money because of the members on their roster, and also provides money by hosting competitions at the university. I believe that the cheerleading squad should not have been attacked, they are part of the athletic department and the team had not done anything specifically wrong. Within this case there are many other issues that are discussed, but to try the cheerleading team in court and accuse them of not following the code of conduct in the “Title IX” document is disrespectful. Other issues, such as, the time the document was written up and the evolution in cheerleading since then should also be re addressed. The cheerleaders at Quinnipiac University seem to provide supporting evidence denying the volleyball teams assumptions. Unfortunately the final ruling in this decision went against the cheerleaders, and ruled them not a sport under the Title IX document. Judge Underhill stated the following “may… qualify as a sport under Title IX; today, however, the activity is still too underdeveloped and disorganized to be treated as offering genuine varsity athletic participation opportunities for students”. Although the decision was not what the cheerleading team was hoping for, Judge Underhill did touch on the topic of the possibility of the future. Where cheerleaders may finally be considered athletes. So for cheerleaders across the world, they will have to do what they do best and keep their heads up.

Real Sport, Real Injuries

Since many people do not think that cheerleading involves any athletic ability, most people do not know that Cheerleading is ranked number 1 for all female sports, and number 2 for the most catastrophic sports injuries under American football. The skills cheerleaders attempt are dangerous, and if not done correctly can cause serious injury. I myself have been subject to many injuries in my cheerleading career. I have sprained both my ankles a combination of twelve times, sprained my hamstring, developed long term back problems, and tore all the crucial ligaments in my left ankle. Cheerleading is most definitely strenuous to ones body, just like any other sport. The United States Sports Academy stated the following, "A growing body of evidence indicates that the increasingly popular world of cheerleading has become one of the most dangerous athletic activities for women. Evolving from sideline squads that once led fans in school fight songs to high-powered, complex, acrobatic shows to motivate the crowd, cheerleading is racking up sprained wrists, twisted ankles, damaged knees, strained backs and sometimes much worse." With a growing impact of injury the safety regulations have began to become more strict, and more rules are being added ever year. Just  when researching previous information to post in this blog, I have came across new rules that have been put into place since the last time I cheered in 2011.  These new safety rules have even eliminated skills that used to be allowed, but were prone to injury. This is unfortunate because some of the limitations put on some skills, are the skills that give the "wow" factor to a performance, but it is more important to keep the safety of the participants then to wow the crowd. I have seen my share and have been apart of mishaps that occur and result in injuries. This is why is it very important for cheerleaders to always be attentive. Cheerleading is very dangerous because one persons mistake can effect an entire group of people. For example, when performing a pyramid, where each individual stunt is connected to another stunt, so if one stunt goes down than there is a possibility that the entire pyramid can fall. Everyone needs to focus on their own job, and be aware of their surroundings to master a skill. Mastering skills in cheerleading is very difficult, one never knows when something can go wrong or when a stunt can fall. This is why cheerleaders strive to master their skills and be able to perform a skill flawlessly, confidently, and on the spot. I believe that when a person has truly mastered a skill is when one can perform the skill in the correct setting, attire, while being mentally and physically prepared at any given point and time. Striving to master a skill is what leads to injury. Athletes around the world need to go about perfecting their athletic performances with caution, or they can risk the event of injury. Learning techniques the safe and proper way are the keys to success. There is only so much cheerleaders can do. Doctors have suggested that the amount of injuries can be due to coaches and administration rather than mistakes made cheerleaders themselves.  

"Those catastrophic injuries are due to lack of trained coaches, training in proper spotting, and to performing technical stunts like pyramids and tosses on concrete and other hard surfaces, the doctors say. They're asking pediatricians, especially those who advise schools, to push for sport designation, and better supervision and training"(NPR.org). The cheerleading community as a whole needs to put in greater efforts on being safe, but just for all you non believers out there, cheerleaders are real athletes who receive real life injuries because of the dangerous skills they perform.

Here is a video clip of the rise of injuries in cheerleading: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbU_T6ZgQR4

High School Cheerleading Safety Rules and Regulations

Comparing High School and All Star cheerleading is easier said then done. Due to the multiple levels in all star cheerleading, there are different safety regulations that apply to each level. Then in high school cheerleading there are a set of safety regulations that are applied to every team, since they are not separated by levels.  In this blog entry, I will give some examples of the safety restrictions that high school cheerleaders are to follow. I will be able to describe to my readers exactly what these restrictions do, incase some are had to understand for those who do not know much about cheerleading.
High School cheerleaders follow a set of rules and regulations provided by the AACCA the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administration. Since there are many rules in which cheerleaders and coaches must obey, I will only be selecting a few important rules that I think are important. The rules are broken up in to category of performance.
First, will be Partner Stunts. Partner stunts are stunts performed within in a group of typically four people. Two bases, a back spot, and a flyer. In certain cases a fifth person called a front spot will be placed in the front of the stunt for more support. Speaking of spotters, a new rule was added in the 2012-2013 season was that states : In single based partner stunts (which mean instead of two bases there is only one), a spotter (person who stands by stunt incase of mishaps) is now required to be present in a single based partner stunt when the top (flyer) feet are in place of the bases hand at shoulder level. This is a new rule because the last competition that I participated in, there were single based stunts performed without spotters. Another rule I had noticed had changed since I was in high school referred to the dismount in partner stunts. When I was in high school, we were allowed to complete two full rotations of a twisting dismount. Now the rules state: The total number of twists in a dismount from a stunt cannot be greater then one and one and quarter twists. This means the the top (flyer) when dismounting from a partner stunt cannot twists their bodies more then one and a quarter times before landing in the bases arms. Next, in the category of Pyramids, which is when there are multiple partner stunts put together to put together one large group stunt. One rule states that; The top person in a pyramid must receive primary support from a base or be connected to a bracer who is on a base. A bracer may not support a majority of a top person’s weight. All of this means is that the flyer in a main stunt group (which in a pyramid is usually held at above the head level) cannot be primarily supported by bracers (who are flyers put up in a partner stunts at either side usually held at shoulder level), they must be supported by their base. Another way to look at this would be that if the bracers were not directly connected to the flyers in the main stunt group, that the pyramid would still be able to be completed. The next category is Inversions, this is when the tops' (flyer) head drops below their waist in a stunt. Since inversions usually occur in a partner stunt or pyramid, one must also follow all of the partner stunt and pyramid guidelines. This is where things start to get a little complicated, for a more complicated stunt, comes more complicated safety regulations.  One new rule added in 2012-2013 was that: A top person may be inverted in partner stunts in which the base of support remains below shoulder level (meaning the bases arms may not be extended over their heads) provided both the following conditions are met:

        a. At least one base or spotter protects the head/neck/shoulder area of the top person. This base or spotter must maintain contact with the top person until he/she is no longer inverted. (Meaning that there needs to be direct contact of support on the flyer until she has returned to the normal position or is dismounted.)

       b. During a downward inversion, two original bases or one original base and a spotter maintain contact with the top person in a position to protect his/her head, neck and shoulder area. This contact must be

maintained until the top person’s hands are on the performing surface or he/she is no longer inverted.
 Inversions are a specific type of a stunt and so is a toss, which is the next category. A toss is a stunt that consists of five people a back spot, two bases, a front spot, and the flyer. This type of stunt is a release skill, which means the bases do not maintain contact with the flyer during the stunt. Since this type of stunt is more dangerous, considering the bases do not have control over the stunt, there are specific rules just for this category. In all multi based tosses to a cradle the following rules apply

1. A top person must be caught by at least three of the original tossers, one of whom must be at the head and shoulders.
   
2. The toss may not be directed so that the bases must travel to catch the top person.
   
3. The top person may not hold any objects (poms, signs, etc.) during the toss.
   
4. The top person cannot travel over or under another person.
   
5. The total number of twists cannot be greater than one and one quarter rotations 
6. No more then four tossers are allowed.                                                                                             Those are just some of the many restrictions put on the stunting portion of high school cheerleading. Since my audience may not know the difference between partner stunts, pyramids, inversions, and tosses; I have included video clips for each. 

Partner Stunt:
Pyramid:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eykzG4vYJO0
Basket Toss: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgidG0hwFeE
Inversion Stunt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wNlrFbeXaM

The Difference of All Star Cheerleading

For those who are a complete third party to the world of cheerleading,  you may also be completely unaware of what All-Star cheerleading is. All-Star cheerleading is just another form of cheerleading, but it only consist of the competition aspects. Basically it gets rid of tradition, and adds something different. Those who have never seen an all-star cheerleading performance are probably the people who still believe that cheerleading is an un athletic activity. Those who have seen performances have hopefully adapted new judgements. All Star cheerleaders represent an entire new community of athletes, these men and women perform at the elite level. Being a part of an all star cheerleading team is a huge commitment, probably more then any sports team based off a school. All star cheerleaders can be compared to elite gymnast, with the vigorous hours of commitment and  strenuous work. They bust their butts to put on the performances that they do, which are truly astonishing. They are able demonstrate cheerleading skills that people do not even know exist. All star cheerleading brings out the enthusiasm and entertainment, something truly enjoyable for an audience to see. Much different then watching cheerleaders chant at football games. Unlike school cheerleading teams who divisions are separated by state, size of school, and size of the team; all star teams are separated by level. These levels are crucial in order to conduct a fair competition. Between level one through six there are different restrictions and rules that each section has to follow. Each level has different requirements to make the team, a difference in the difficultly of skills, and sometimes have age restrictions. These levels are put in to place to have teams compete with other teams equivalent to them, therefore there are no strong advantages to certain teams. There are multiple differences between all star and school based cheerleading below the college level. The safety rules between all star and school based cheerleading have the most significant difference of all. Some of the skills all star cheerleaders are allowed to perform are restricted at the high school level of cheerleading because of the level of difficulty.  There are also many other stunting and tumbling restrictions placed on school based cheerleading that is allowed in All Star. Another blog post with specific rules and examples will help give my audience a better understanding of what I mean by safety restrictions. Also, all star cheerleading does not involve an actual cheering segment. Typically, a high school cheerleading competition routine consists of stunting, tumbling, a dance segment, and a cheer segment. For all star cheerleaders they omit the actual cheer portion in the routine. The uniforms are even different between all star and high school, for example high school cheerleaders contrary to what people see in movies are not allowed to have their stomach showing. They are required for a full torso top. Also, all star cheerleaders do put on more of a performance then most school based cheerleading teams, so they have to show it. They go all out, what you see all star cheerleaders look like before competition is not similar to school based with the hair, the style, and the make up. Also as previously stated all star cheerleaders have much more of a commitment to the sport then school based teams, although their commitment level is still equivalent to that of any other athlete on another sports team. All star cheerleaders travel all over the united states, just for weekend competitions, not even for title holding championships. To think that these ladies and gentleman continue to participate in cheerleading without being recognized as true athletes, only goes to show how much love and passion cheerleaders hold. Cheerleaders work hard because they want to, they love what they do, and how hard they work reflects on the titles they earn. It is a complete different world then what everyone imagines it as. It's not all about the drama and being popular, its about the sport!

Below is a link of The Top Gun Large Coed Level 6 team performance at the Worlds 2012 Championship
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugC9bcJChKc

How Cheerleading Was In The Past

Cheerleading has been known as a crowd leading support groups, whose members are supposed to conduct chants at sporting events. This began in 1898 when the first cheerleading group at Minnesota University performed at a football game. It is now the year of 2012, and cheerleading has come a long way since then. Though many school cheerleading squads still hold this quality of being the schools athletic teams support system, cheerleading has also adapted a competitive side. School based cheerleading teams now have the opportunity to perform competitively. To be able to compete competitively adds an entire new spin to things. What an audience sees at sporting events does not begin to explain the techniques and skills that cheerleaders use in competitions. Cheerleading teams that perform at sporting events mainly do so to uphold the history of cheerleading, it's how it has always been done. Instead of completely changing tradition, cheerleading has kept this component and has added a more athletic component. Cheerleaders now demonstrate complex and dangerous skills which expose them to high risk of injury. The American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators   stated the following; "Today, cheerleading involves skills which require the strength of football, the grace of dance, and the agility of gymnastics. Complex maneuvers are performed which challenge the limits of the body. Safety organizations such as the AACCA were formed to develop safety rules to guide programs in the safe performance of cheerleading gymnastics, which include jumps, partner stunts, pyramids and tumbling" (AACCA). There has been a major shift in the athleticism required to participate in cheerleading now a days, and cheerleaders deserve proper recognition. As a previous cheerleader myself, I personally have always favored the competition season more then the preparation season, which is during the typical football season. I did enjoy attending the games and keeping the cheerleading tradition alive. I believe that is why many cheerleaders chose to still participate in performing at many school football and basketball games. Performing at school sanctioned events is a pleasure but it isn't the reason why I chosen to be a cheerleader for so long. The hard work a cheerleading team puts into their competition season would surprise many. In high school my team would begin preparing for our first competition before the start of football season. Typically, cheerleaders start preparing in September for the first competitions occurring in the end of December or beginning of January. Those who are not cheerleaders would not understand why a two minute and thirty second routine would take this long to practice, but that is because in the world of cheerleading it isn't about how much you practice, it's about how perfect you can execute the skills. Any cheerleading team can prepare and practice for months on end, but nothing helps mentally prepare ones self  for before they hit the mat. Anything can happen out there, one is never positive that what they have been practicing and perfecting for months will go as planned. The competition aspect of cheerleading adds and entirely new twist, it's a completely different from what the majority of people see. My goal throughout this blog is to expose those to the excitement and athleticism cheerleading holds. We all work just as hard as all the other athletes who are admired, and because of the past it should not justified the future judgements of cheerleaders. 

 From the past                               To                         To the Present

The bottom picture is of a pyramid from my high school cheerleading team January 2011.