This Season, Cheerleaders Have A New Mantra – “Safety First”

According to a November 3, 2010 KTLA Special Report, cheerleading “has become the most dangerous and deadly sport for young women, especially [right here] in California.” Over the last decade, emergency room visits have increased vastly. Over the past year, nearly 30,000 cheerleaders have been treated for injuries stemming from cheerleading -who are fourteen-and-a-half years old, on average. Nevertheless, the demanding nature of cheerleading has- and continues to put many young girls at risk. In many cases, parents and cheerleading safety advocates find the injuries unnecessary and have teamed up to try and promote a safer environment for these young athletes. In fact, the startling number of cheerleader injuries -especially in California- has one California organization, The Spirit Consultants, focusing their efforts entirely onto promoting safer cheerleading practices in the state. The organization’s website, The Spirit Consultants attribute many of the factors that contributed to cheerleading becoming the most dangerous sport for female athletes included: “unqualified coaches, who lacked proper certification; cheerleaders performing stunts they were unprepared for; lack of an emergency plan for catastrophic injuries; stunts performed on the incorrect surfaces, like concrete; and, cheerleaders’ lack of access to certified athletic trainers.” Even though implementing cheer safety regulations in a state like California -where there are no safety requirements or mandatory safety training for coaches- is quite the stunt, this cheerleading organization has spotters ready, in case their initiatives fail to grab a decent foot hold. For starters, The Spirit Consultants have started offering indoor summer safety camps for cheerleaders and dancers, to combat heat-induced injuries and provide appropriate mats for cheerleading stunts and tumblers. Before, cheerleading and dance camps were most commonly held outdoors at college campuses across the United States. Unfortunately, many of these camps lacked proper safety measures. Another difference for The Spirit Consultants camps was their decision to hire on-site athletic trainers to help treat injuries and prevent future ones. While popular opinions may hold that cheerleading is little more than pretty faces and pom poms, KTLA and The Spirit Consultants seem to have proven that safety tops the list of concerns for the 2010 cheerleading season.