Still arguing that cheerleading isn’t a sport? The Olympics aren’t.
After years of petitioning by competitive cheerleaders around the globe, last Monday, the International Olympic Committee finally gave cheerleading a provisional status to be included as an Olympic sport. The news comes as a positive turn by cheerleaders across the country who have been a part of the movement to show the nation that cheerleading is truly a sport.
Kirsten Dunst and Gabrielle Union in 2000’s cheer comedy “Bring It On.”(IMDb.com)
Because of movies like the “Bring It On” series, many see cheerleading as an activity that mean girls in high school participate in, but in reality cheerleading is a highly competitive sport that requires constant training and physical strength. While the sport does contain dancing, it also contains tumbling (flips), stunts (throwing people in the air) and jumps which all incorporate high intensity training.
“People have these preconceived notions about cheer that it is not a sport or that it is just primarily dancing,” says Brenda Chavez, 19, a Citrus College cheerleader majoring in Anthropology, who also cheered at Eagle Rock High School. “ … I feel that lifting people along with doing moves similar to gymnastics makes it worthy of the Olympic Games.”
Although cheerleading has been approved as a sport in the games, it’s provisional at the moment. What does this mean? The committee will be watching over national cheer teams around the world before they make it onto the Olympic mats. This means we may not be seeing them until the 2022 games in Beijing, China. The IOC has granted $25,000 in funding to the International Cheer Union. The provisional stage will last for three years. At the end of the period the IOC can then vote to officially recognize cheerleading, at which point the ICU can petition to be included in the Games.
The ICU’s sports director, Kit McConnell, said that the sport’s “high youth appeal” was factored into the vote to make it an official sport of the Olympics. The committee hopes to raise viewers.
Even with all efforts of advancement, NCAA does not recognize cheerleading as a sport. They have not commented on why it isn’t included on the official sport list. Hopefully the addition of cheerleading in one of the world’s biggest sporting events can begin to change minds.
“I think it will open up eyes to see just how much work actually goes into it,” said Katlyne Stiles, 18, a Biology major at Citrus College. “ … It’s more than just pom poms and giant bows.”
