Do you think cheerleading is a sport? Cheerleading is a very difficult, strenuous, and dangerous activity. Between the death defying stunts and bone breaking tumbling, cheerleading should be in the Olympics for crying out loud.

Resent studies on cheerleading and cheerleaders have shown that cheerleading is a risky activity. Cheerleading is risking your well being, health, and future; All to not get recognized as a real sport. Why shouldn’t cheerleading be considered a real sport? Cheerleaders compete, regional, and national events just like any other sport.

I attend MSA Academy in Plaquemine, Louisiana. At our school we do not have a football team, but rather a soccer team. No one wants to cheer for soccer games. The cheerleaders at our school participate in competition cheer instead. We practice three, sometimes four, times a week until about 5:30. This is double more than half of “real sports” do in a month. Our practices consist of tiring flexibility training, exercising to be able to keep moving at high-end energy speeds for up to five minutes non-stop.

Like any other sport there are competitions in cheerleading. Which ever squad wins is awarded trophies and, of coarse, bragging rights. Cheerleading puts a strain on the body mentally and physically. Unlike other sports, in cheerleading we lift people; forget the mindless weights. Which is harder?

Participating in cheerleading builds character as well. In order to perform well there needs to be a sense of trust of communication between the squad. Tem captains or leaders are selected by the sponsor and keep everyone in line. These are good qualities that all sports should have and are definitely present in cheerleading.

A sport is defined as an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment. In this notion, cheerleading is a sport. The perception that cheerleading is not a sport is made out of ignorance. No matter what, cheerleading will always be a sport in my eyes. Those whom do not cheer know nothing about what cheerleading is actually about, and what all goes into a cheerleading performance. For someone who hardly knows anything about cheerleading, to classify it as not being sport is absurd.