- Mar 1, 2012
- 186
- 323
I had never cheered all-star before cheering collegiate, L5 and L6 in Canada.
I think as long as we have collegiate & university cheerleading, all-star L6 should exist. I think we should be focusing more on increasing knowledge, safety, and awareness of coaches AND athletes (who are all adults) at this level, as opposed to axing it completely. I feel collegiate and L6 cheerleading is really the soul of the sport ...
There are videos circulating all the time of JV teams, SV, or all-star L2-5 athletes doing L6 skills. There are arenas for these teams to compete the skills they have - but they still attempt those skills. I think even if open L4 gains popularity, the unqualified athletes and coaches attempting L6 skills will persist... for many people, 2.5-high pyramids and flipping baskets are a symbol of prestige, which leads to unsafe attempts being made.
I think the USASF has said an L6 credentialing program is being developed for years!! This is an industry standard for coaches... so where is the follow-through? In the meantime, while we wait, responsible and experienced coaches and industry leaders (and athletes, to some extent) should be speaking loudly about safety in L6.
Additionally, we can educate our younger athletes to understand whether things are safe for them to do... and that they should speak up when they have concerns. (Not tiny and mini, but junior and senior athletes should be mature enough to grasp some of those ideas).
I think as long as we have collegiate & university cheerleading, all-star L6 should exist. I think we should be focusing more on increasing knowledge, safety, and awareness of coaches AND athletes (who are all adults) at this level, as opposed to axing it completely. I feel collegiate and L6 cheerleading is really the soul of the sport ...
There are videos circulating all the time of JV teams, SV, or all-star L2-5 athletes doing L6 skills. There are arenas for these teams to compete the skills they have - but they still attempt those skills. I think even if open L4 gains popularity, the unqualified athletes and coaches attempting L6 skills will persist... for many people, 2.5-high pyramids and flipping baskets are a symbol of prestige, which leads to unsafe attempts being made.
I think the USASF has said an L6 credentialing program is being developed for years!! This is an industry standard for coaches... so where is the follow-through? In the meantime, while we wait, responsible and experienced coaches and industry leaders (and athletes, to some extent) should be speaking loudly about safety in L6.
Additionally, we can educate our younger athletes to understand whether things are safe for them to do... and that they should speak up when they have concerns. (Not tiny and mini, but junior and senior athletes should be mature enough to grasp some of those ideas).