All-Star "cheerleading Is Not A Sport"

[omgitskennyy]

Step one in defending Cheerleading as a Sport: Make the person define what a sport is. You can't have a serious argument until you establish what the criteria are.

I don't think that it comes down to how "hard" or "cool" it is.

One time at school I pulled out a dictionary and made them look up what "sport" meant. So by definition:
SPORT: An activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others

And they just looked at me like a deer in headlights, and then i went ranting on and on about how hard it is to put 110% of your physically abilitiy into a 2.5 minute routine, and how hard it is to lift PEOPLE, and i would like to see you throw a person that weighs the same as you in the air like 50 feet. Or how much in shape you have to be to put at least 2x your body weight on our hands a wrists and then flip 6,7 feet high and twist at the same time, then land with a smile on your face. If they are still confused I throw a standing tuck. (if we are on grass) i have like a set list of things that i say, i should start making pamphlets or something...haha

 

[AllstarObsession]

seriously. i could care less what the next person thinks about my activity.

i remember at USA camp a couple summers ago, one of the staff said that cheerleading (sideline) is not a sport. Nearly everyone threw a tantrum.

 

[star1998]

I don't argue the point anymore. It's Okay that people don't think it's a sport. Allstar cheer lives in it's own little world. We are the only ones who know it's a sport. We are the only people who can figure out how the game is played. For most people, (especially the new parents) it take's years and years to learn. It will never be considered a sport if the common folks can't figure out how the game is played.

 

[stuntjumptumble]

I usually say alright... If it's not a sport, go do a backflip. Right now. Then talk.

I say the same thing!

 

[AshleyErin]

I normally just let them waste their breath. I know what I do and I know it's a sport. My teammates know it, and my coaches know it, so really what they think isn't going to change my opinion, and most of the time these people are just trying to get a rise out of you.

 

[WHOAitsjesss]

normally people just say that to make me mad...they BETTER know cheering is a sport. they dont bother arguing with me cause they know im right

 

[ShallowPoms]

I just giggle and walk away

 

[xoxbeastbackspotxox]

I say
"We might wear sparkly make up and curl our hair but we tumble, stunt, jump and dance. We work hard." Then I show them a video of Top Gun Unlimited 2010 at NCA or a straight legged scorpion picture and they agree that cheer is a sport =)

 

[cheerleaderforlife]

But really, how is golf a sport????

 

[cheerismylife]

My first reply: I'm not even gonna start this with you.

In 7th grade I argued with my social studies teacher about it for an entire year. Guess who admitted it was a sport?

And then all the guys in my 8th grade social studies class kept saying it wasn't a sport so my teacher let me put up a video on the whiteboard.

 

[monicanicole]

I usually just tell people they are right, but also wrong. Cheerleading is really subjective. A full-up or a double down doesn't earn you 6 points like a touch down in football. In football, a touchdown will ALWAYS be 6 points and a field goal will ALWAYS be 3. A free throw in basketball will always just be one point. Cheerleading is judged in a completely different way than most sports. It's not like a RO BHS Full gets you 10 points like a strike in bowling. There is too much left up to someone else's opinion to be considered a sport in the sense that MOST people think of. Us cheerleaders completely disagree. This is not to say that cheerleaders aren't athletes. I'm sure we take way harder hits than some football players. Cheerleading is just so much different than anything else. Even gymnastics...their tumbling passes are given a starting score and then deducted from there.

I think it's awesome that cheerleading is its own thing

 

[kaylalalaxo]

I usually just tell people they are right, but also wrong. Cheerleading is really subjective. A full-up or a double down doesn't earn you 6 points like a touch down in football. In football, a touchdown will ALWAYS be 6 points and a field goal will ALWAYS be 3. A free throw in basketball will always just be one point. Cheerleading is judged in a completely different way than most sports. It's not like a RO BHS Full gets you 10 points like a strike in bowling. There is too much left up to someone else's opinion to be considered a sport in the sense that MOST people think of. Us cheerleaders completely disagree. This is not to say that cheerleaders aren't athletes. I'm sure we take way harder hits than some football players. Cheerleading is just so much different than anything else. Even gymnastics...their tumbling passes are given a starting score and then deducted from there.

I think it's awesome that cheerleading is its own thing

Very true and well said!

 

[tappingqueen13]

Definitely this. I was going to say the same thing.

It really depends on WHY they are saying that. If they're just ignorant and they finish it with something like "Really...standing next to a football field waving your pom poms and yelling is not a sport." then it's easy to argue that one down - I usually say "Hm...yeah you're right. But since neither of my kids has ever done that, I guess we're not talking about the same thing. I'm talking about competitive cheer - have you ever seen it?" These are also the people who usually say "Even a judge said so!" and I'm ready and armed with my aresenal of facts for these people - I've actually been successful occasionally on this one, once I explain what the judge actually ruled and that the media just ran with the whole "Judge rules that cheerleading is not a sport" angle.

If they're saying it because they just want to be obnoxious...then I don't waste my breath or time...I just go with the eye roll and the aforementioned "Shut up"

If they actually define sport and their definition doesn't encompass cheerleading (this is where the judge's ruling came in) - most of the people in this group will argue that cheer doesn't have any kind of objective scoring, it's all subjective - these people have a point that is much harder to argue with. I've found that most of these people are not disputing that cheer is an "athletic activity" - so showing them TG video will get you nowhere. These are usually people who also don't think gymnastics, figure skating, and golf are sports either. I usually discuss for about 2 minutes and then agree to disagree.

^^This. Criteria needs to be set before an argument can happen, because I for one know many people who don't consider bowling and golf sports. You need to first know what the word 'sport' means to the person before you can explain allstar cheer to them!

 

[BlueCat]

This entire "argument" always makes my brain hurt. Step one in determining whether "X" is a sport? Define what a sport is.

People will spend hours debating about how "hard" it is, how often you get hurt, how "cool" it is, etc. Do those things determine whether it is a sport? That depends on how you define it.

My personal favorite definition: a contest with rules/guidelines that is primarily determined by the physical actions of the competitors.

This would leave out sideline and "pro" cheerleading, and include competition cheer. For reference, playing "catch" wouldn't be a sport, but baseball proper would be. Kicking a ball around wouldn't be, but soccer would be.

 

[ScottyB]

breaking out a 5 year old thread during christmas break? nice!