I consider it a sport. This was discussed a little between me and Eric in his Guru thread in the sports area. I decided it would possibly make for a good debate. After searching around the web, I found that it truly is a heated debate on the subject of cheerleading as a sport or not a sport. Take out of the equation the argument that they are cheering for football games and other sports. I am wanting this debate to focus on the actual competions hosted all over the country (world?) where cheerleaders go to compete against each other for trophies. Start out your response with you vote of "its a sport" or "its not a sport" if you dont mind before you follow with your perspective.
As competitions, definitely a sport. Sure, I may laugh in mocking scorn at the cheerleaders around my school district and such, who do it mostly because of the whole status quo thing, but seeing squads that are actually good at it perform...gymnastics is certainly a sport, n'est-ce pas? Cheerleading competitions are gymnastics and dance, choreographed amazingly. After all, the people who are good at these things and make them look effortless, what you're really seeing is the result of hours and hours of hard work and tiring practices. Cheerleading for competitions is indubitably a sport.
There is no way in hell that cheerleading is a sport. My sister was a high-school, college, then professional cheerleader, doing competitions consistently. There is no way you can consider it a sport when they break off from their team and compete in individual stunt groups. Also, a sport is defined as: A physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively. Cheerleading isn't set by a real group of rules. While Cheerleaders are great athletes, there is no way that they are participating in a sport.
What?? There are rules in competitive cheerleading. A crapton of rules. It's a sport, stfu if you think it's not. You don't have to respect it, but it's still a sport.
Lol Angie, I respect it, but not a chance it is a sport. There rules are very undefined. But mainly, if they do something wrong, it is a deduction, not a broken rule Their rules are like no wearing jewelry, no using springboards, soft-soled shoes must be worn. They are safety rules, not guidelines to A sport
Gymnastics is a sport .. in the Olympics even. They get points deducted if they do something wrong , not a broken rule. So your defense holds no water Also, if you skim through : http://www.sportserve.co.uk/item.php?cat=114&i=554 , there are many rules which seem very similar to gymnastic rules in alot of areas
Those are not rules for a sport, those are rules for that competition. They need set rules. Gymnastics has rules such as each competitor must compete in all events, on the uneven parallel bars they must use boths bars. On the vault they must hit the platform, on the floor they must have tumbling passes, etc. These are not similar to Cheerleading. And just because something is in the olympics does NOT mean it is a sport. There are the stupid ribbon dancers, no one can argue that that is a sport.
Lighttiger, by those standards, exercising would be considered a sport, and no one would make that argument lol
there are 20 states that consider cheerleading a sport by the definition of sports. The rest are sure to follow. You are a dying breed Erik lol
If you doubt the athleticism of cheerleading, take a look at a pro squad doing a routine. Long gone are the days of everyone clapping on the floor and doing basic cartwheels. Girls are thrown into the air to perform complicated air maneuvers and then caught by their peers. Members of the squad leap across the mats and complete tumbling patterns that would rival the moves of any Olympic gymnast. They do all of this with bright smiles on their faces, and they are in perfect unison.
I think it's a sport since you need stamina, practise and skills to actually cheer the crowd for like hours xD