Cheerleading Essentials

Cheerleading incorporates elements of dance, gymnastics, and intense school spirit. Although cheerleaders are most often spotted by the average person on the sidelines of basketball and football games, cheerleading squads are usually active on the competitive level as well. Squads may be comprised of all females, co-ed, or, rarely all-male.

Types of Cheerleading

• School-sponsored: Most cheerleading teams represent their school. Cheerleaders can begin as early as elementary school. Many American universities have cheerleading as part of their recreation program.
• Youth League: Many organizations that have youth basketball or football leagues sponsor cheerleaders as well. Pop Warner , for example, is a non-profit organization that gives children ages 5 to 16 the opportunity to join a football team or be a cheerleader for their football team.
• All-Star Cheerleading: Emerging in the 1980s, All-Star Cheerleading focuses mainly on competitions. The U.S. All-Star Federation for Cheer and Dance Teams, or USASF , formed in 2003 and has since acted as the national governing body for all-star cheerleading and created specific rules and standards to use when judging performances. In late 2006, USASF assisted in creating the International All-Star Federation, or IASF , and brought cheerleading to other countries. All-Star squads are usually comprised of 6 to 36 people. Performances are intense and most squads spend all year preparing to compete. The performances, however, are a mere 2.5 minutes. All-Star squads are placed into divisions based on age, ability, team size, and gender of participants. The age of participants range from 4 to 18 and up. Squads usually compete in 5 to 8 competitions a year. The ultimate goal is to place high enough in these competitions to make it to Cheerleading Worlds, where the best squads from all over the world compete for the title of World Champions in their respected divisions.

Related Guides

Uniforms	Megaphones	Pom Poms	Shoes	Cheer Stuff

Related Searches

all star cheerleading   all star cheerleading competitions   allstar cheerleading   basketball cheerleading   champions cheerleading   cheer   cheer and dance   cheer and dance competition   cheer camps   cheer chants   cheer choreography   cheer competition   cheer competitions   cheer leading   cheer moves   cheer nation   cheer shoes   cheer stunts   cheer uniforms   cheer videos   cheering   cheerleaders   cheerleaders cheerleading   cheerleading   cheerleading accessories   cheerleading all stars   cheerleading allstars   cheerleading apparel   cheerleading association   cheerleading blog   cheerleading camp   cheerleading camps   cheerleading championship   cheerleading championships   cheerleading chants   cheerleading cheer   cheerleading cheers   cheerleading cheers and chants   cheerleading choreography   cheerleading class   cheerleading classes   cheerleading clothes   cheerleading clothing   cheerleading coach   cheerleading coaches   cheerleading coaching   cheerleading com   cheerleading company   cheerleading competition   cheerleading competitions   cheerleading costumes   cheerleading dance   cheerleading dance routines   cheerleading dances   cheerleading drill   cheerleading dvd   cheerleading facts   cheerleading formations   cheerleading game   cheerleading games   cheerleading gear   cheerleading gifts   cheerleading gym   cheerleading gymnastics   cheerleading gyms   cheerleading highschool   cheerleading history   cheerleading information   cheerleading injuries   cheerleading instruction   cheerleading instructions   cheerleading is a sport   cheerleading is not a sport   cheerleading jackets   cheerleading jumps   cheerleading magazine   cheerleading magazines   cheerleading mats   cheerleading megaphone   cheerleading megaphones   cheerleading motions   cheerleading mounts   cheerleading moves   cheerleading movies   cheerleading music   cheerleading national   cheerleading nationals   cheerleading on tv   cheerleading online   cheerleading outfit   cheerleading outfits   cheerleading photography   cheerleading photos   cheerleading pics   cheerleading picture   cheerleading pictures   cheerleading poems   cheerleading pom poms   cheerleading practice   cheerleading pyramid   cheerleading pyramids   cheerleading quizzes   cheerleading quotes   cheerleading results   cheerleading routine   cheerleading routines   cheerleading rules   cheerleading sayings   cheerleading scholarships   cheerleading shirts   cheerleading shoes   cheerleading signs   cheerleading sites   cheerleading songs   cheerleading squad   cheerleading squads   cheerleading statistics   cheerleading stretches   cheerleading stuff   cheerleading stunt   cheerleading stunting   cheerleading stunts   cheerleading supplies   cheerleading t shirts   cheerleading teams   cheerleading tips   cheerleading training   cheerleading tryout   cheerleading tryouts   cheerleading tumbling   cheerleading uniform   cheerleading uniforms   cheerleading video   cheerleading videos   cheerleading website   cheerleading websites   cheerleading words   cheerleading youtube   cheers   cheers for cheerleaders   cheers for cheerleading   coa cheerleading   college cheerleading   competion cheerleading   competition cheers   competitive cheerleading   elite cheerleading   extreme cheerleading   football cheerleading   free cheerleading mixes   georgia cheerleading   high school cheerleaders   high school cheerleading   high school cheerleading stunts   history of cheerleading   how to cheer   illinois cheerleading   inside cheerleading   inside cheerleading magazine   junior cheerleading   junior high cheerleading   male cheerleading   maryland cheerleading   middle school cheerleading   nation cheerleading   national cheerleading association   nca   nca cheerleading   nfl cheerleading   penn state cheerleading   pictures of cheerleading   pom cheerleading   pom poms   posters cheerleading   premier cheerleading   pro x cheerleading   professional cheerleading   regional cheerleading   scorpion cheerleading   squads   stunting   team cheerleading   the history of cheerleading   tumbling   uca   uca cheer competition   uca cheerleading   uda cheerleading   universal cheerleading   universal cheerleading association   usa cheerleading   varsity   varsity cheer   varsity cheerleading   varsity cheerleading uniforms   wii cheerleading   www cheerleading   youth cheerleading   youth cheerleading uniforms