Latest news with #WorldCheerleadingChampionships
The Citizen
08-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Parktown High cheerleader elated after receiving South African blazer
Parktown High School for Girls learner Jocelyn Knox reflected on being awarded her South African blazer for cheerleading. Jocelyn, and her team, recently came back from Orlando, America, where they competed in the International Cheer Union (ICU) World Cheerleading Championships, the official world championships for youth, junior, and senior national cheerleading teams. 'We recently returned from competing at worlds from April 23–25,' said Jocelyn. 'It was an incredible experience. All six South African teams successfully made it to the finals. While not medaling, we did extremely well, and have more work ahead of us for the ICU World Cheerleading Championships in 2027.' Read more: Parktown High School for Girls hosts surprise performance by Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra The Grade 10 learner said that when she began the sport in Grade 7, she was drawn to how close the team was, and the strong bond everyone had with each other. 'I loved the idea of being thrown in the air and tumbling across the mat. I love the family I gained through it, and the lessons I learned from it.' Also read: Parktown High School for Girls cross country teams excel in early season races The cheerleader's accolades include: being awarded her provincial Colours in 2023 by the Gauteng Majorette and Cheerleading Association (GMCA), receiving her South African Majorette and Cheerleading Association (SAMCA) Colours in 2024 at a provincial competition, and becoming the national and African champions for the high, large, co-ed category, in September 2024, after competing at nationals in Cape Town. Jocelyn added that receiving her South African blazer was a long time coming, with her journey stemming from her four years in gymnastics, but it wasn't an easy task, with her first trials for the SA team taking place in April 2024. 'Every athlete that was on either team, or in the training programme, trained together for six months, until the second period of trials in October. While training for the national team we all still trained with our actual teams, and continued competing in all the local, provincial, and national competitions that happened along the way. Once the second round of trials was over, the official teams were selected. ' Jocelyn concluded that she wants to continue cheerleading for as long as she can. Participating in competitions for many years to come, and, hopefully, being part of the team that makes history for South Africa with a win. Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok for the latest updates and inspiration! Have a story idea? We'd love to hear from you – join our WhatsApp group and share your thoughts! Related article: Parktown High School for Girls raises funds through a fun day At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
RTÉ News
28-04-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Irish team makes history at ICU cheerleading championship in Florida
Ireland has won its first ever world medal in cheerleading and earned its highest senior team placement to date. A team of 18 athletes aged 12-14 from counties Galway and Kerry secured a bronze medal in the youth coed median division of the 2025 International Cheer Union (ICU) World Cheerleading Championships in Orlando, Florida. It is the first time an Irish national cheer team has medaled at the ICU World Championships. Another team, made up of 17 athletes from Galway, Killarney, Enniskillen and Belfast, finished in the seventh place, the highest ever placement for an Irish senior cheerleading team at the event. It marks a major breakthrough for cheerleading in Ireland and highlights the continued growth of the athletes on the global stage. Over 70 nations and thousands of athletes take part in the ICU World Cheerleading Championships each year. President of Cheer Sport Ireland, Fiona Collumb, said they are "beyond proud" of the Youth Coed Team securing third place. "After 14 years of attending, this is a truly remarkable accomplishment," she said.
ABC News
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Australia off to Cheerleading Worlds after sport's unprecedented boom
Cheer is synonymous with Bring it On, the Dallas Cowboys, wide smiles and prancing pompoms. But what hides behind all that, is the grit, strength, stamina and sacrifice it takes to get to the elite level. Josephine Croft cheered for about 20 years. She loved the feeling of performing in front of crowds. "There's an adrenaline rush and a very addictive [feeling] to competing and having an audience watch you complete these skills that you have to get right one time and one time only," she said. And now, she loves the fact that stereotypes are being quashed. "Cheer had the stigma of being the 'dumb chick' sport," she said. "I think it's really empowering to women. You need to be tough." Croft cheered for over 20 years. ( Supplied: Tenacious Stories ) Along with her career on the mat, Croft has had quite a glittering one off it. She's also the producer and director of documentary Hitting Zero, which follows an Australian team to a 2017 championship competition and aims to buck those stereotypes even more. Australia is headed to the International Cheer Union World Cheerleading Championships again this year, with the competition starting this month. Last year the all-girls team won gold, the first time Australia had ever done so. Caitlin Dagher is part of that team and can't wait to get on the mat. "We're going through this really great moment, in the last 24 months, where a woman-dominated sport has a top team that are all women," she said. Australia will compete in the International Cheer Union World Cheerleading Championships in late April. ( Supplied: Tenacious Stories ) Sport of the moment Cheerleading has grown significantly in Australia over the last 20 years. "When I joined, I was something like the 2,500th member, and that was back in 2008," Croft said. There are now over 60,000 competitors registered with the Australian All Star Cheerleading Federation. Nicole de Vries is also on Team Australia, and says cheer is an all-inclusive sport. "Everyone knows someone that does cheerleading," she said. Cheer lacks a governing body in Australia, with Gymnastics Australia stepping down as its overseer in 2018. Cheer currently lacks a governing body in Australia. ( Supplied: Tenacious Stories ) The sport is currently undergoing a transformation period, seeking accreditation as a national sporting organisation and government recognition. The International Olympic Committee granted full recognition to the world governing body for cheerleading, the International Cheer Union, in 2021, which made cheerleading eligible for potential inclusion in the Olympic Games. However it won't be included in Los Angeles 2028. "Hopefully in the next couple of cycles we'll get [into] the Olympics," Dagher said. "I think that's where we'll really see the legitimising of cheer. It makes me really proud to be in the start of that era." Challenging cheerleading stereotypes De Vries says the reality that athletes experience in cheer is far from the stereotypes. "No one cares how your hair looks or what clothes you've got on, " she said. "It's just a really safe space." Cheer's growth in Australia continues to challenge stereotypes. ( Supplied: Tenacious Stories ) For Dagher, what also stands out is the camaraderie of the sport. "I find that doesn't exist in similar acrobatic or dance-like sports where there's a much bigger individualist element," Dagher said. Cheer has categories for both co-ed teams and all-female ones. "Cheerleading started as a female-only sport, and because of that the technique [largely] relies on speed rather than strength, which is why a lot of stunts are really fast," Croft said. "It makes girls feel good for being strong and fit and not [for] the way they look." And no matter what shape or size you are, there's a spot for everyone. "Generally, smaller people are at the top because they're lighter, but no matter what [body type], you can be on the team. I think that's a really positive aspect of cheerleading." Cheerleading is welcoming to all types of bodies and strengths. ( Supplied: Tenacious Stories ) Dagher reflects on the joy the sport brings. "I think it's very rare as an adult and particularly as a woman to have that moment of completely unfiltered happiness. It's such a wonderful feeling compared to my everyday, reserved professional life". De Vries agrees. "You can be young, old — we have some athletes who are in their 40s. We have all-ability teams." Croft concludes that whether you're a backspot, flyer, base or tumbler, the team lifts one another up. "The girls on the team build each other up rather than tearing each other down." Do you have a story idea about women in sport? Email us Shining a light on substance After the success of Netflix docuseries Cheer, Croft embarked on making her documentary Hitting Zero, which follows the Southern Cross Cheer Legacy team as they prepare for the 2017 US All-Star Federation World Championships in Daytona, Florida. Photo shows Young boy in team lycra green and black standing held up by girls holding one leg up behind him as flier in a cheer stunt. Thirteen-year-old Loghan Sculthorpe has made the Australian squad for the World Cheerleading Championships where he'll compete with a male teammate for the first time. The title refers to a perfect routine with no points deducted. They achieved that the year prior when they won silver, and Hitting Zero chronicles their attempt to go for the top spot. It also portrays Croft's final year of competition. At 36 — the oldest member of the team by at least a decade — Croft wanted to retire from cheerleading to try to have a baby. She'd previously returned from an injury in which she'd broken her arm during a stunt. Croft's reflection on adrenaline and timing calls to mind her documentary's title, too. On one hand, the tiniest deduction, which might be imperceptible to the untrained eye or general spectator, can prevent a zero-hit routine. "But in another way, it's the smallest thing, so it doesn't really matter," Croft said. What does matter is that anyone can compete in cheerleading as long as they have the right attitude. ABC Sport is partnering with to elevate the coverage of Australian women in sport. Scarlett Harris is a Melbourne author and culture critic. You can find her work at her website, The Scarlett Woman, follow her on X @ScarlettEHarris and read her book, A Diva Was a Female Version of a Wrestler: An Abbreviated Herstory of World Wrestling Entertainment.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Barriers disappear, spirits soar as gold-medal cheer squad heads to Orlando for world championship
Pulse, a team with Coastal Wave Elite, includes athletes with disabilities. In April, it will be the first team of its kind in the province to compete at the World Cheerleading Championships in Orlando, Florida. The CBC's Maddie Ryan swung by the Mount Pearl gym to learn more.
CBC
15-02-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Barriers disappear, spirits soar as gold-medal cheer squad heads to Orlando for world championship
Pulse, a team with Coastal Wave Elite, includes athletes with disabilities. In April, it will be the first team of its kind in the province to compete at the World Cheerleading Championships in Orlando, Florida. The CBC's Maddie Ryan swung by the Mount Pearl gym to learn more.
