March 08, 2019 at 05:49AM
Cheerleading, a controversial sport in society's eyes. Cheerleading is highly perceived as a discreditable sport simply due to the stereotyped perception on the individuals who participate in the sport, however I would like to shed a new light on the cheerleading in which our society could be more appreciating and accepting of the dedication and diligence it requires to perform such routines.
I feel the main reasons cheerleading is robbed of all its credibility of being an intensely difficult sport would be the stereotype its fallen under for years. A stereotype enforcing that cheerleading is only for good looking girls with a certain desirable look, dressed in short skirts flaunting themselves around a boy's football game. I am a cheerleader myself and I can confirm in reality cheerleading is in a complete contrast of its stereotype. I am not suggesting that cheerleaders are not all good looking, however the assumption of the way cheerleaders look is completely in its entirety false. All girls have completely different looks and it would be wrong to assume the all have the exact same body and face type. The clothing is also completely misjudged, for example the supposition of the clothing cheerleaders wear is significantly more drastically revealing than its reality. Truthfully the uniform in cheerleading probably reveals the same or even less than a sport like dance or gymnastics. Yet cheerleading is the sport which suffers from backlash about the uniform which is in my opinion is very sad. Overall the 'look' of cheerleaders is one of the main reasons why cheerleading is immediately labelled as a reprehensible sport and rid of its credibility.
An additional reason to why many people are submissive towards cheerleading as a sport would be the lack of knowledge about the sport itself. I have been asked on countless occasions the question "what do cheerleaders actually do though?", which I think perfectly demonstrates the obliviousness society has towards the sport itself. Cheerleading is not a group of girls dancing on the side of a men's football game, though people like to believe it is, it is actually teams choreographing a routine including stunting, gymnastics and dancing and performing them at enormous competitions with rival teams from all over the nation, country or even sometimes world depending on your team's skill level. Additionally, it seems people are slightly oblivious to the difficulty of the sport, there are many people who believe cheerleading is just flaunting yourself around and being sassy. However, in reality it requires immense strength to be able to base your stunts to ensure your flyer is safe, strength and flexibility of which must be built up over time as it builds muscles that many other sports do not strengthen and stretches bones to that degree before. Finally, you must be able to perform a certain level of gymnastics tricks otherwise you will almost indefinitely not be allowed on the team. Overall I believe it would be naïve to believe if you can be sassy and dance around you will automatically have the capability to be a cheerleader.
In conclusion I find it saddening how the image of cheerleading is so tainted in the public eyes and I sincerely hope society will be able to recognize the credibility some of these cheerleaders deserve. I hope we can move past viewing cheerleading under such a stereotypical light and truly accept it as a competitive and demanding sport, a name it has it has always deserved.
Cheerleading, a controversial sport in society's eyes. Cheerleading is highly perceived as a discreditable sport simply due to the stereotyped perception on the individuals who participate in the sport, however I would like to shed a new light on the cheerleading in which our society could be more appreciating and accepting of the dedication and diligence it requires to perform such routines.
I feel the main reasons cheerleading is robbed of all its credibility of being an intensely difficult sport would be the stereotype its fallen under for years. A stereotype enforcing that cheerleading is only for good looking girls with a certain desirable look, dressed in short skirts flaunting themselves around a boy's football game. I am a cheerleader myself and I can confirm in reality cheerleading is in a complete contrast of its stereotype. I am not suggesting that cheerleaders are not all good looking, however the assumption of the way cheerleaders look is completely in its entirety false. All girls have completely different looks and it would be wrong to assume the all have the exact same body and face type. The clothing is also completely misjudged, for example the supposition of the clothing cheerleaders wear is significantly more drastically revealing than its reality. Truthfully the uniform in cheerleading probably reveals the same or even less than a sport like dance or gymnastics. Yet cheerleading is the sport which suffers from backlash about the uniform which is in my opinion is very sad. Overall the 'look' of cheerleaders is one of the main reasons why cheerleading is immediately labelled as a reprehensible sport and rid of its credibility.
An additional reason to why many people are submissive towards cheerleading as a sport would be the lack of knowledge about the sport itself. I have been asked on countless occasions the question "what do cheerleaders actually do though?", which I think perfectly demonstrates the obliviousness society has towards the sport itself. Cheerleading is not a group of girls dancing on the side of a men's football game, though people like to believe it is, it is actually teams choreographing a routine including stunting, gymnastics and dancing and performing them at enormous competitions with rival teams from all over the nation, country or even sometimes world depending on your team's skill level. Additionally, it seems people are slightly oblivious to the difficulty of the sport, there are many people who believe cheerleading is just flaunting yourself around and being sassy. However, in reality it requires immense strength to be able to base your stunts to ensure your flyer is safe, strength and flexibility of which must be built up over time as it builds muscles that many other sports do not strengthen and stretches bones to that degree before. Finally, you must be able to perform a certain level of gymnastics tricks otherwise you will almost indefinitely not be allowed on the team. Overall I believe it would be naïve to believe if you can be sassy and dance around you will automatically have the capability to be a cheerleader.
In conclusion I find it saddening how the image of cheerleading is so tainted in the public eyes and I sincerely hope society will be able to recognize the credibility some of these cheerleaders deserve. I hope we can move past viewing cheerleading under such a stereotypical light and truly accept it as a competitive and demanding sport, a name it has it has always deserved.