All-Star Cheering In A Siblings Shadow

[Hungry]

I've coached sisters (not at the same time, on the same team) and there are huge differences, yet also some similarities. The older sister was just a natural cheerleader, great backspot, great jumps but starting late in the tumbling and has always been a struggle for her.

The younger sister is an amazing tumbler, but not a very good stunter and dancer. However, they both get very mental, emotional and sensitive.

I don't believe I've ever compared the two. As a coach, you have to know everyone's personalities on your team and treat them as individuals. It doesn't matter if they're related, best friends or brand new. Every child is unique and should be acknowledged as such.

 

[srt418]

My sister and I are 10 years apart and a couple of my coaches coached or cheered with my sister. One year, my sister coached me!! (That was awful!).

Anyway, I was fortunate. The only time my coaches compared me to my sister was when I had major attitude. Which always put things in perspective for me bc my sister's attitude is awful and I never wanted to be like that. They would say "that was a kim thing." When something like that was said, I immediately shaped up!!

I don't think it's ok to compare skills unless it's a huge compliment to the younger one. For example, suzie's fulls are beautiful. Eve's fulls are ok. Eve always looks up to suzie and wants to have similar tumbling to hers. Eve finally has a beautiful full. Coach tells Eve that her full was as beautiful as Suzie's!!

 

[12stepCheermom]

Mine don't ever get compared that I'm aware of. In part it's probably because one is a guy and the other is a girl. My son is now at a dead heat with her in tumbling skills, she's been doing this three years longer. So he caught her in three seasons. But everyone blows off his progress with "he's a guy they just pick it up fast" including her.

I'll hear coaches talk about technique, for instance in privates last week he said, she's setting absolutely perfectly, he's got stronger arms and hips for the wrap so if we put them together we've got a perfect full! But, that's about it. They're as opposite as they can be with tumbling but they're now in a dead heat.

Had privates today and they're both throwing good, technically correct hollow body "fulls" that they're landing. But right now they're both about a quarter short of getting it all the way around. So the sibling rivalry is on for who will hit it first. If they'd had about 20 more minutes today, someone would've gotten it.

The only skill he has that she doesn't is jumps to back (he passed her there but his jumps arent as good as hers) so she's determined to land this one first.

Sometimes rivalry is a good thing, but they're very supportive of each other, they're on the same team (jr 4) and its nice they have something to share like this. They like to gripe with each other, but I think they really like cheering together.

 

[BuegeSmalls]

I'm a triplet, so obviously everyone always compared us to each other. The most frustrating was when I had a mental block and everyone was like "your sisters can do it, so why can't you?!"
Uh sorry, just because we look alike does not mean our brains work the same way.

 

[CheerBank]

One of the many reasons my cp wanted to go to the gym we switched to this season was because her older sister had never cheered there. She wanted to be finally be known as her own person and not as "older cp's little sister".

 

[AliciaM]

I've coached sisters in the past a few years apart from each other. One was a flyer with tumbling and the other was a base/back spot with no tumbling but she always tried hard in everything and she was a good stunter. This has happened twice actually where i've coaches sisters on the same team ..I would never compare them but I think sometimes when they think they are getting compared or one is "outdoing" the other than it could be a cause for concern. Both sets of sisters had one of them quit eventually for not wanting to be on the same team/not progressing as much in skill.

I now coach 3 sets of twins and one set has another sister on the team. I've only been coaching them for a month and so far no probs

 

[Cheermommy3]

Anybody have it the other way, where the older cp gets compared to their younger sibling? Happens every so often to my 2.

 

[AScheer]

I don't have a sister so I've never had that issue. I do coach a pair of sister that are one year apart though and have learned a lot through it! I don't compare them, they are two completely different girls in every way. I actually can't really think of one way they are alike. The older one is a natural athlete that catches on quick. The younger has to work hard for everything. They do get comments from their peers though occasionally on one not being able to do blah blah blah or something to that effect. I've coached them for 4 years now, and this year the oldest has aged out. It has been the best thing for her younger sister. She has excelled and shined since her sister moved on. I think she finally feels like she has an identity of her own

 

[AliciaM]

Anybody have it the other way, where the older cp gets compared to their younger sibling? Happens every so often to my 2.

both sets of sisters that I've coached in the past have been compared to their younger sisters who just happened to have more skills than them and both younger sisters happened to be flyers and tumbled

 

[cheernerd5678]

I've never been compared to my sister in cheer, because she's not a cheerleader! but i've seen sisters compared and i hate it. there were two girls on my team, one was 3 years older, and people always say "why are you so much better than her" and she absolutely hates it, because she knows people say it to her sister or her sister overhears, and it's like well, she's older so...
there are two sisters on my team now, 2 years apart, and the older one is the captain. the younger one (we don't really get along) likes to tell everyone how she progresses faster than her sister... which is SO rude and uncalled for, i think if it were me i would try to not say anything...