Cheer Facts that still surprise many people
in Europe
There are at least six million cheerleaders across 38 countries world-wide.
Squads are supporting sports teams and schools in :-
America;
Australia; Austria;
Balarus;
Belgium; Brazil;
Canada; Chile;
Columbia; Costa Rica;
Cuba; Czech Republic;
Denmark;
England; Finland;
France; Germany;
Ireland; Italy;
Japan;
Luxembourg;
Malaysia; Mexico;
Netherlands; New Zealand;
Norway; Panama;
Poland;
Russia; Scotland;
Singapore;
Slovenia; South
Africa; Spain; Sweden;
Switzerland; Ukraine
and Wales.
A Century Of Cheerleading
Cheerleading is almost 100 years
old! Johnny Campbell lead the first cheerleaders at a Minnesota
University American football game on
November 2, 1898.
Originally cheerleaders were all men. It was not until the 1920's
that women became involved. Paper poms were introduced in the 1930's and
the modern vinyl pom was invented by Fred Gastoff around 1965.
Cheerleaders Are
Athletes
Cheerleading involves
cheers,
chants, jumps,
dance, tumbling,
gymnastics, partner
stunts and pyramid
building. Cheerleaders are not just dance entertainers
at games, they have to master difficult and demanding athletic techniques
and be effective crowd leaders, often training longer hours than the players
they cheer for. During a typical gridiron game players may get breaks,
but cheerleaders go flat out for three and a half hours in all weathers.
Famous
Cheerleaders
Many famous and talented people were cheerleaders. Former US
President
Dwight D.
Eisenhower; actors
Jimmy Stewart
and Kirk
Douglas; actresses
Meyrl Streep,
Raquel Welch,
Cybil
Sheppard and
Terri Hatcher.
Competitive
Cheerleading
Already accepted as an athletic
discipline in its own right in many countries, international
cheerleading championships have up to
210 squads competing
and attract over 12,000 cheerleaders family and friends. Some are televised
on Prime Time sports channels. With a regular schedule of regional
state and national competitions across America cheerleading could arguably
be considered a fully fledged sport.
Cheerleading 'Stats
up
97% of all cheerleaders
are female, however almost
50% of collegiate
cheerleaders are male.
12%
of cheerleaders are aged 5 to 13 years,
and 12%
are dancers. The largest growth area is Juniors.
83% in school
squads hold leadership positions in school organisations, and
83% have 'B' grades
or better.
62% are involved
in a second sport. (American Sports Data
Inc.)
British cheerleading has more than 11,000 participants, across over 300 clubs from Guernsey to Thurso.
Cheer Facts that still surprise many people
in Europe
