Cheerleaders are risking serious injury and death to support their teams

[T_i_B]

I guess the cheerleaders will end up in the same protective clothing that American "football" players wear then.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/3135928/Cheerleaders-are-risking-serious-injury-and-death-to-support-their-teams.html

But new research shows that cheerleaders, who once dazzled with their smiles and sequins, are at greater risk of serious injury than American football players.

Instead of just cheering on their team, cheerleaders are now encouraged to compete in high-stress competitions, where dangerous throws and tumbles reminiscent of gymnastics are the norm. Because the pastime is not regulated like a sport, accidents are common and cheerleaders are swapping their pom poms for crutches, knee braces and ice packs.

Campaign groups, horrified by a growing incidence of "catastrophic injuries" which have left cheerleaders with disabilities, paralysis and even dead, are fighting to clean up the "sport", where many school coaches do not have the necessary safety training.

Figures collated by the National Centre for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research found that between 1982 and last year, 67 young women suffered devastating injuries or death, which accounts for two out of three of all serious sporting injuries among young women.

[Droopy]

1. I've seen the cheerleading competitions

It looks as if young women are tossed around like a basketball, some of them maybe 15 feet off the ground. You might see a little bit of that stuff in college football cheerleading. The pros just have pretty women out there shaking their butts and showing some cleavage.

If I were competeing in those chearleading competitions and I were a woman, I'd at least like to have a helmet.

[rug]

2. This is not a gratuitous cheerleading picture.

[Silver Swan]

3. In Illinois

High school cheerleaders in Illinois are forbidden to "basket toss" or to have pyramid formations over two levels.

(At least, this was the case when my daughter was a high school cheerleader, thank goodness.)

[Radical Activist]

4. I've heard cheerleaders argue its a sport because they get injured.

Kind of funny. People get injured falling down stairs but that isn't a sport either.

[TommyO]

5. Save the cheerleaders, save the world.

[flvegan]

6. Wait...67 women in 26 years?

And they're at "greater risk of serious injury than American football players"? I doubt that statistic holds up.

Not discounting the danger of being thrown around like that, but come on. I'm not surprised that there's a lack of training amongst the coaches, though.

[LeftyMom]

7. My sister blew out her knee cheerleading.

Keep in mind that at competitive levels, we're talking about a sport with most of the risk of gymnastics (since there's a similar skill set) but almost none of the safety apparatus.

[jmowreader]

8. Add to that...

Remember when you and I were in school, and cheerleaders just danced around on the sidelines screaming "Two bits, four bits, six bits, a dollar / All for (your school) stand up and holler!"? Traditionally, the cutest teacher was the cheerleading advisor, and the cheerleaders were the most popular girls in school. Hell, we VOTED on the cheerleaders!

Now cheerleading is legitimately dangerous, but it's probably still the twelve most popular girls in school led by the cutest teacher. This is not a safe situation.

[LeftyMom]

9. Here they do auditions, and the cheer coach picks

But the really competitive cheer teams are private and not associated with a school at all.