All-Star Risk mitigation and prevention...

[Darenn1000]

Hi, I have a background of ~10yrs in Acrobatics Gymnastics (mixed pair / up-to national level Germany) and recently decided to engage more into Cheerleading - I see some things in common regarding Tumbling and Stunting. Originally I just wanted to exercise and do some stunts but now got dragged more into competition team - despite my age I seem to be above team-average.

One thing I have noticed though is there seems to be a lot more injuries in Cheerleading - in one year I have seen more injured flyers / tops as in ten years Acrobatics. I wonder why is this: Is this just a team-issue?

In Acrobatics I am used to a lot more prevention (landing mats, soft floor mat, rolling-mat, harness belt / no additional spotter). We had extensive training ~10hrs a week, usually non-interchangeable groups each working on their own - not so much chattering and high trust.

In Cheerleading currently for stunting and tumbling rolling mats, standard gym mats and soft shoes are used - sometimes spotter are applied. Training is ~4,5hrs a week and groups are changed and mixed according availability - increasing team bond a bit more.

Is this the usual training environment in Cheerleading? How do other teams organize / equip their trainings / teams?
Latest incident: Around 3 weeks ago one flyer broke a leg while two (licensed) coaches tried a new two-base-stunt - incl. walking / moving into a new pyramid position. Only covered by standard gym mats. My top tried to hold the falling flyer and was pulled down as well - I had difficulty to manage catching as not to step on the flyer lying already on the floor in pain.

Btw. another thing I find a bit weird is that there seems to be no issue adding flyer with minimum age of 14 to teams with adults - I am currently 33 years old male and I am concerned about legal issues or "shitstorms" - especially since there are elements you actively touch the buttocks (partially) as a backspot i.e. liberty stand.

 

[WinstonsGirl]

**This is all based on my experiences across several provinces in Canada and what I have seen. Every gym is different in how/how long they train. This is also probably not a complete list, and sometimes weird accidents/injuries happen in every sport**
There's a lot that can influence injuries. Some gyms will not have enough safety equipment, some coaches, even while certified will not follow proper progressions to ensure things are being taught in a safe manner (competition season is coming and you 'need' the harder skills fast to be competitive), and a lot of it if that cheer doesn't seem to take the same amount of time to reach the higher levels as other sports. For example, high level teams (and teams to get there over the years) may only train 4-6 hours per week, whereas similar aged/levels in gymnastics, for example, may spend 20-30 hours in the gym. This isn't counting tumbling/flyer classes, but in general, many high level cheerleaders are not in the gym twice a day training as with other higher level sports. Now, this can help with overuse injuries that you may see in other sports, but that's still fewer hours perfecting skills.
Another thing that I find is that many gyms, especially adult teams aren't in the gym training weights in the same way other high level sports do. The athletes who tend to do this are doing it because they want to, not necessarily because it's required. I've seen a lot of injuries from people because they don't train/condition/strength train enough out of the cheer gym to keep their bodies strong.
Finally, and this is solely my guess based on experience, but kids in general don't run/play/jump/crash nearly as much as the previous generation. They're not on the playground, are are on screens more, and their kids bodies aren't developing muscles and therefore stronger bones in the same way kids did 20+ years ago. I teach phys-ed, and have never seen more broken ankles, wrists in my career than in the last 10 years, and usually it's from someone tripping and falling. Something that wouldn't normally have caused a break. I have no research to back this up, just my observational experience. I'd bet that many kids coming up the sport now are lacking some of that naturally gained 'play' strength and agility, leading to worse injuries.

As for the big age issue, you're right, and we're making a lot of changes in Canada (and the US, I think) to remove these huge age gaps. All I can suggest at the moment is to ensure you're never stunting alone, and I'd recommend keeping the minors off your social media. Lots of problems have been popping up there. Clarify with your coaches and stunt group there as to where you need to be for proper placement and technique so that everyone is aware and on board and comfortable. If you are uncomfortable, talk to your coaches for alternate placements. Everything should be going both ways - keeping both you and the younger athletes safe

 

[CoachHannah]

I will second what you’re saying here about how many gyms simply don’t have the safety equipment. Unless you’re going to a big name gym, the smaller ones very often 1) lack the progressions as you’ve described, since they don’t have as many athletes and therefore “skip” levels (i.e. only having a level 2 and level 4 team because kids are getting their tumbling, but then they haven’t learned the stunt progressions to match), and 2) they don’t make as much money as larger gyms with hundreds of athletes. That lack of money can also affect the quality of the coaches hired (like hiring coaches not trained in progressions who care only about getting the “harder” skills for comp to stand a chance).



Cheer is inherently dangerous is a way many sports aren’t - your flyer is being lifted, tossed, and spun into the air by other people. It’s one thing to flip through the air on your own in tumbling, as you have full control over the entire process. Stunting, you don’t — if your base missed a grip, or the flyer shifts their weight the tiniest bit, or the backspot doesn’t throw as hard on this rep as they normally do — all those little factors affect whether or not the stunt hits or you fall. However, if a gym has EXCESSIVE injuries, I would question the quality of the coaching staff. Sometimes freak seasons do happen where it seems like everyone is hurt in one way or another, so do bear that in mind, but if people keep getting seriously hurt (i.e. broken or concussed) that’s most likely a reflection of coaches who aren’t enforcing proper spotting or pushing for skills the group isn’t ready for.

 

[Darenn1000]

Hey, thank you both for sharing your insights. The Administrative and Organizational parts might differ quite a bit comparing North-America with Europe (especially Germany): We definitely have a less-monetary-driven gym / club culture in Germany adding another factor / multiplier onto some topics - usually a gym or club is supposed as a non-profit organization with around 11€ per month (median from Germany around 2020) but heavily depends on volunteers that are more and more difficult to find

Technically though no matter the location we have the same "laws of physics" leading to same risks and preventions... ideally as well the same safety and progression rules applied by the official commitees.

In Acrobatics Gymnastics I once learnt to toss my top from handstand position on floor ontop of my hands - while the top executes a 4/4 front flip. Especially those elements I barely can think of "mastering" without starting in a harness belt the coach made us use a lot - and enforcing similar tosses before enhancing to this level. In the end this element was more or less done by muscle memory and reflex for slight adjustments - everything else would be very difficult to handle on a competition having to deal with so many outside influences.

So I think both of your statements reflecting the lack of "perfection before progression" is something my coach from Acrobatics Gymnastics made my top and me in the past not having to care about / be aware of:

and a lot of it if that cheer doesn't seem to take the same amount of time to reach the higher levels as other sports

but if people keep getting seriously hurt (i.e. broken or concussed) that’s most likely a reflection of coaches who aren’t enforcing proper spotting or pushing for skills the group isn’t ready for.

I recently talked to the coaches as well. So we will see how things go... currently I think the best I can do is improve the working conditions (safety / reliability... perfection) with the people and ressources I directly have at-hand to - focus on my personal exercise and group performance and leave the overall team performance to the coaches.

Thank you very much so far