A Sport Without Recognition
Here, is our local Kamehameha Kapālama cheerleaders as they perform their routine at their States Championships.
Cheerleading has been around in the United States for hundreds of years. Unlike other further established sports, cheerleading is not recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as an official sport.
When I say cheerleading should be a sport, I am not talking about sideline cheering at football and basketball games; I am talking about competitive cheerleading that is scored and judged. This type of cheerleading consists of three main components- jumping, stunting, and tumbling which all require physical exertion, just like any other sport.
Due to not being declared a “sport” by the NCAA, there is less funding available for cheerleaders who go on to the collegiate level. Stacy Zieger, a writer for “Suburban News Publication” in Ohio, says that scholarships for cheerleaders usually consist of somewhere between $500 and $1000 a year to compensate for their participation on the team, while football players on average get around $17,000 a year. This is mainly because football players can get scholarship money from the NCAA while cheerleading scholarships come directly from the institution, or an outside funder.
Funding for injuries is also not as applicable as it would be if the NCAA were to officially declare cheerleading a sport. Josh Kosman, a writer for the “New York Post” reported that cheerleading has sent 37,344 cheerleaders to the hospital in 2012. Collegiate cheerleading was responsible for 70.2 percent of all female catastrophic sports injuries while high school cheerleading was responsible for 65.2 percent of all high school female catastrophic events. Although cheerleading accounts for the majority of catastrophic sports injuries, they are not funded by the NCAA to financially aid the families who are involved in these gruesome events.
Without being declared a sport by the NCAA, approximately 120,000 female and 3,000 male cheerleaders in the United States miss out on additional funding from their schools, further scholarships, and increased safety measures. Cheerleading should be declared a sport through the NCAA due to the physical exertion it requires, to improve safety precautions, and to increase the financial funding the collegiate cheerleaders could receive.
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Hi! My name is Lisa Hopoi and I’m from ʻAiea. I’ve been attending Kamehameha since the 7th grade and I’m currently a Senior. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always loved to write stories and I can’t wait to take part in Ka Mōʻī. I am most interested in the interviewing aspect of Ka Mōʻī because I love to hear what people have to say about different events happening around campus. I hope to spread the news and keep everyone up to date about what’s happening around campus.
Emma Edwards • Nov 26, 2019 at 12:40 pm
Through this piece, I can clearly see that this topic of discussion is important to you and I applaud that. Iʻd also like to say that I agree with and support your desire for the NCAA to fully recognize cheerleading as a rigorous sport that is worth compensation and recognition. I think I relate so strongly to this opinion piece because I also participate in a non-mainstream sport and as such, I feel like I understand where youʻre coming from. Hopefully, there are changes to come in the future.
Jenesis • Nov 26, 2019 at 12:38 pm
After reading this article, I definitely think NCAA should consider cheerleading as a sport. As they said, I do not think cheering on the side of football games should be a sport but instead, competitive cheer should be. Iʻve seen a few cheer competitions and noticed how technical and difficult the stunts of some of the competitors had to do. After seeing cheerleaders working basically all year long and not even getting a locker rooms, I feel bad for them and definitely think they should be more recognized for their dedication and hard work. Not everyone can do backflips nor the splits.
Alexander Melemai • Nov 26, 2019 at 9:15 am
This was overall a great piece and I really do agree that cheerleading is a very physical sport. Cheerleaders don’t get enough respect because they work just as hard as any other sport. I disagree with you using football players as a comparison. I also did disagree with the point that the NCAA should help to pay for a cheerleaders schooling. First off a football player and a cheerleader have two very different effects on the NCAA. The NCAA makes money off of football players, they don’t make much money off of a cheerleader. Comparing the two is like comparing the melody to the bass. The football players are the melody that people pay to see which is why the NCAA should pay for their schooling. A better comparison to cheerleaders are the band because they are also part of the background experience. I feel the NCAA shouldn’t pay for someones schooling if the NCAA make little out of it.