Table of Contents

What Is Cheerleading?

Cheerleading is a physical activity that combines elements of dance, gymnastics, acrobatic stunts, tumbling, and chanting — performed either in support of sports teams (sideline cheerleading) or as a competitive sport in its own right (competitive/all-star cheerleading). Approximately 4.5 million people participate in cheerleading in the United States, making it one of the most popular athletic activities in the country.

From Yell Leaders to Athletes

The first organized cheerleading happened at the University of Minnesota in 1898. Johnny Campbell stood in front of the crowd at a football game and led them in coordinated cheering. For the next several decades, cheerleading was dominated by men — it was considered a leadership activity, and participants were called “yell leaders.”

Women entered cheerleading during World War II, and by the 1960s, the activity had become predominantly female. This gender shift coincided with a change in perception — from leadership activity to support role. The ponytails-and-pom-poms stereotype solidified in American culture.

Then, starting in the 1980s, cheerleading began transforming again. Competitive cheerleading emerged as squads started incorporating increasingly difficult gymnastics and stunting, performing 2.5-minute routines scored by judges. Today’s competitive cheerleading routines include skills that would be recognizable to Olympic gymnasts: standing back tucks, full twisting layouts, and sequences that require elite athletic ability.

The tension between cheerleading’s identities — sideline support activity vs. competitive athletic endeavor — remains unresolved and politically significant. Title IX (the federal law requiring gender equity in school athletics) doesn’t count sideline cheerleading as a sport, which affects funding and resources. Competitive cheerleading’s push for sport recognition is driven partly by the practical benefits that recognition brings.

What Cheerleaders Actually Do

Stunting

The most visually dramatic element. Stunts involve athletes (bases and spotters) lifting, throwing, and catching other athletes (flyers). Basic stunts include shoulder stands and thigh stands. Advanced stunts involve tossing flyers into the air for twisting, flipping catches (basket tosses), building multi-level pyramids, and performing one-legged balance positions (liberties, heel stretches, scorpions) at full extension overhead.

Stunting requires exceptional trust between bases and flyers, precise timing, and significant strength. A flyer in a full-up liberty (tossed from ground level into a one-footed stand on a base’s hands with a full rotation) is performing a complex athletic movement — but so are the bases who generate the force, control the catch, and maintain stability.

Tumbling

Gymnastics skills performed on flat ground (no spring floor in most cheerleading contexts). Competition routines require tumbling passes that can include round-off back handspring sequences, standing tucks and layouts, and full-twisting flips. Elite competitive cheerleaders perform tumbling at a level comparable to college gymnasts.

Dance

Choreographed dance sections showcase synchronization, musicality, and team coordination. Dance in cheerleading tends toward high-energy, sharp movements — more hip-hop and jazz influenced than ballet, though flexibility and body control from dance training are essential.

Jumps

Toe touches, herkies, pikes, and other standardized jumps performed with maximum height and flexibility. A good toe touch requires the jumper to achieve near-split position at the peak of the jump — demanding both explosive leg power and exceptional hip flexibility.

Cheering

The original element — leading crowds in organized chanting, cheer sequences, and school spirit activities. Sideline cheerleaders coordinate crowd engagement during football and basketball games. This remains a significant part of high school cheerleading, even as the competitive side draws more attention.

The Competition Circuit

Competitive cheerleading operates through several major organizations. Varsity Spirit (now owned by Bain Capital) runs the largest competition circuit, including national championships at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando. The U.S. All Star Federation (USASF) governs all-star (non-school-affiliated) competitive cheerleading. The International Cheer Union coordinates international competition.

A competition routine lasts 2 minutes and 30 seconds and packs in stunting sequences, pyramid formations, tumbling passes, jumps, dance sections, and synchronized cheer segments. Scoring evaluates difficulty, execution, creativity, and overall performance. Teams at nationals train 15-25 hours per week, comparable to other competitive sports.

The all-star cheerleading world (gym-based teams unaffiliated with schools) has grown enormously since the 2000s. All-star gyms charge $3,000-$8,000+ annually per athlete for training, uniforms, competition fees, and travel. The Netflix documentary Cheer (2020) brought this world to mainstream attention, showcasing the extreme athleticism and emotional intensity of competitive cheerleading at Navarro College.

The Injury Question

Cheerleading’s injury statistics demand acknowledgment. It accounts for roughly two-thirds of catastrophic injuries (those causing permanent disability) among female athletes in the U.S. The stunting element — throwing and catching human bodies — creates inherent risk that no amount of technique fully eliminates.

Context matters, though. Cheerleading has more participants than almost any other athletic activity, which inflates raw injury numbers. Per-participant injury rates are comparable to other contact sports. And most injuries occur in inadequately supervised settings — poorly trained coaches, inappropriate skill progression, and practicing without proper safety equipment.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that cheerleading be designated a sport specifically so it would receive the same safety oversight, coaching requirements, and injury surveillance that other sports receive. Paradoxically, cheerleading’s classification as an “activity” rather than a “sport” may make it less safe, not more.

More Than Stereotypes

Cheerleading sits at an uncomfortable cultural intersection. It’s simultaneously stereotyped as frivolous (the pom-pom cliché) and recognized as genuinely dangerous (the injury data). Its participants are athletes performing elite-level skills while often being dismissed as decorative.

The reality is more interesting than either stereotype. Cheerleading requires a rare combination of strength, flexibility, coordination, trust, and performance ability. A competitive cheerleader who can tumble, stunt, dance, and perform under pressure has an athletic skill set that transfers to almost any other physical discipline. Whether you call it a sport, an activity, or something else entirely, the physical demands are real, the competition is fierce, and the 4.5 million Americans who do it aren’t confused about what they’re doing. They’re athletes, whether the classification catches up or not.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is cheerleading a sport?

This depends on context and definition. Competitive cheerleading — where squads perform scored routines with gymnastics, stunts, and choreography — functions as a sport by every practical measure. Sideline cheerleading (supporting other teams' games) is classified as an activity, not a sport, by most athletic governing bodies. The International Olympic Committee granted observer status to the International Cheer Union in 2016, and cheerleading was provisionally recognized as an Olympic sport in 2021.

How dangerous is cheerleading?

Cheerleading accounts for roughly 66% of all catastrophic injuries in female athletics in the United States, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research. Most serious injuries involve stunting (tosses, pyramids, and basket catches). The overall injury rate is comparable to other contact sports when measured per athlete-hour. Proper training, qualified coaching, and appropriate skill progression significantly reduce risk.

When did cheerleading start?

Organized cheerleading began at the University of Minnesota in 1898, when student Johnny Campbell led the crowd in organized chants during a football game. For its first 50+ years, cheerleading was predominantly male. Women entered cheerleading during World War II when men left for military service, and by the 1970s, cheerleading had become predominantly female. Competitive cheerleading emerged in the 1980s.

Further Reading

• USA Cheer
• International Cheer Union
• National Federation of State High School Associations