Cheerleading: A Sport

Because of the physical demand, skill set needed, and the rules set to tumble, stunt, and jump, competitive cheerleading should be considered an official sport. Yet cheerleading has rules, guidelines, training, and many other things other sports also include. It also is definitely a physical and contact sport which has caused countless injuries throughout the years of the sports existance. But, most people only know cheerleading as sideline (school) cheerleading and have not had a glimpse into the world of competitive (All Star) cheerleading.

Cheerleading is simply entertainment for viewers and is a social club for its participants. “Sports Beat - The Sport of Cheerleading: It’s a lot More than Just Pompoms and Smiles,” points out that a main benefit of cheerleading is the ability to “easily transition into the entertainment industry” (Hatton C-04). This statement supports our belief that cheerleading should not be considered a sport. Cheer-leading, the leading of cheers at sporting events is not a sport. Entertainment, versus athleticism, is more of what cheerleading is. Team supporters are present at games/events to raise school spirit and encourage cheering. Cheerleading generally requires a competition to be in progress, so the cheerleading itself can occur. This is not an activity which can take place alone.

To begin the argument at hand of whether or not cheerleading is a sport, it must be recognized that there isn’t truly a set/official definition for what a sport is. There are no set of regulations that have been universally agreed upon in which all activities can be examined against in order to determine whether those activities is a sport or not. It’s difficult to put under simple terms and rules what exactly qualifies something as a “sport” without disqualifying any currently agreed upon

Whether cheerleading is considered a sport has become a very controversial topic over the past few years. Due to lack of education of the sport, it is very frowned upon by other athletes. Other athletes seem to feel that cheerleading isn't difficult and requires minimum to no effort. These accusations can be very hurtful when coming from a cheerleader’s perspective. Based on their strength and skill, the amount of practicing and maintaining health, the number of injuries, and its competitive aspect, cheerleading should be considered a sport. The talent that these young men and women have is phenomenal. The performance of their skills looks extremely flawless but no one truly knows what goes on behind the pretty stunts and synchronized

The physical activity must have five elements, some include overcoming the resistance of a mass, competition against an opponent, and the rules must define time, space, the purpose of the activity, and the conditions under which a winner is declared. In addition to, acknowledgement that the competition is an evaluation of the skills of the participants and the key purpose of the activity is for competition. Competitive cheerleading fits into all five of these categories through stunts, tumbling, competitions, score sheets, time limits, and mat size. Cheerleading also fits into these categories through the Entertainment and Sports Programming Networks (ESPN) comparing cheerleading routines and a competitive cheerleader’s sole purpose is to compete. Most people in the world do not think cheerleading is a sport for several reasons. Some they think cheerleading does not have a strategy, while others think cheerleaders do not have enough physical ability. However, cheerleading fits into all of the categories of what must take place in order to deem it as a sport (Cheer

Cheerleading is not a sport at the moment, but people are working on making it a sport by 2017-18. Meanwhile, many government officials have voted that it is not a sport at the moment. Eric Sondheimer and Matt Bonesteel can back up the opposition. The American Medical Association is working on making Cheerleading a sport because it is a dangerous activity towards high school female

Even though Cheer is considered a school club or an outside activity, cheer should be considered a sport because they compete seasonally and have all the requirements for being a sport. Cheer should be considered a sport because it has all the requirements to be a sport. Some requirements to be a sport are contesting and the sport 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 which cheerleading has both of these (Nicole Lauchaire). This basically means there is no reason that Cheer should not be considered a sport. Some people may disagree saying that cheerleaders wear “10 pounds of makeup,” and “two

What is the formal definition of a sport? The dictionary considers it to be “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.” There seems to be much dispute over whether competitive cheerleading fits the criteria of a sport. Cheerleading has developed into something almost completely different than what it used to be in the past. Competitive cheerleading consists of performing physically demanding routines and competing against other squads.

Dictionary.com defines a sport as “an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature” (Dictionary.com n.d.). Competitive cheerleading contains all of these items; therefore, making it a sport. But, do all cheerleaders compete on a competitive level? No, they do not, but the ones that do should be considered as being in a sport. Although the majority of sports have looked down upon cheerleading, competitive cheerleaders work out and practice the same amount or more often than the football team. In fact, the competitive cheerleading season lasts longer and has more event dates than the football schedule. Therefore, cheerleading should be considered a sport due to the skills, training, and teamwork needed to compete.

According to the website Dictoinary.com, the word sport is defined as “an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature,” but to Marla Jo Fisher, staff writer for The Mom Blog and author of the article “Cheerleading is Not a Sport,” cheerleading does not meet the standards of a true “sport.” Her immature and unrealistic views, ridiculous morals, and over-protectiveness of her child try to convince us why cheerleading isn’t and shouldn’t be considered a sport. Yes, she is entitled to her own opinion, but I am also entitled to mine and I believe that cheerleading IS more of a sport than “digging in my garden” as Fisher puts it.

The Oxford dictionary defines the term sport as, “an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment,” cheerleading fails to own up to this expectation. The debate between if cheerleading is a sport or not has been relatively debated throughout the last half-century. Usually you'll hear girls (maybe even some males) arguing with other athletes, that their, “sport,” is an actual sport, but it's not. Cheerleaders across the country like to say that cheerleading is a sport, while the other side agree that this is in fact not the truth. This debate has probably been going on since cheerleading had first started in 1898, though

From the outside looking in people might see a gathering of girls yelling and doing neat tricks, but from the inside looking out, it’s completely different. Cheerleading is a team effort and it takes every courage of your body to push you to keep going. In the late 1800’s, cheerleading was brought up to mind when people in the crowds would chant and yell during football or basketball games. Many people that hears the name “Cheerleading” tend to bring down the idea of it being a sport, when it is a sport. If you were to define the definition of sport, you will get “an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature,”1 So why isn’t it considered a sport?

Not on a field, not on a court, but still a sport. Most people will argue that cheerleading is not a sport, but the definition of sport says otherwise. According to the dictionary, the definition of sport is an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment. Competitive cheerleading teams go to regionals, sectionals, state, and even nationals to compete against other cheer teams. They have rules to follow and a winning team just as any other sport does, so cheerleading should be considered a sport.

My objective is to get a reasonable explanation on why some people would consider cheerleading to not be a sport. I want to know how Cheerleading began and what the purpose of Cheerleading was when it was created. It is a fact that Cheerleading is evolving as years go by and it is getting a lot tougher. Strength plays a major role in Cheerleading, especially for male cheerleaders. Cheerleading started with cheers and chants in the 1800s but then it started to involve tumbling and acrobatics. "Cheerleading." World of Sports Science. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2007. 139-141. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 19 Sept. 2016.

Girls and boys alike all over the world enjoy cheerleading. Some people discredit the value of cheerleading by not allowing it to be a sport. Cheerleading involves hard work and dedication. The cheerleaders put in long hours and push themselves to be better at what they love. They try new things and challenge standards with every performance, blowing the minds of their audiences. It teaches people the value of teamwork, positive attitudes, and encouraging others. It requires long hours of practice and attendance at competitions and games just like many other sports including football, basketball, and soccer. People never question whiter those activities are sports. So why do people questions the validity of cheerleading to be a sport? Cheerleading