ENG-106 Defintion Essay on the the sport of Cheerleading PDF

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Some people thing that cheerleading is not considered a sport however throughout this essay, it will give a counterargument of why it would be considered one....

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Running head: CHEERELEADING IS A SPORT

Cheerleading is a Sport Andrew Ortega Grand Canyon University: ENG-106 February 12th, 2019

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CHEERLEADING IS A SPORT Cheerleading is a Sport

Even though it is fun to tell cheerleaders that cheerleading is not a sport, we have to think about how much they actually do. The controversial topic of whether cheerleading is a sport or not has been an ongoing topic for quite some time now. Cheerleading has been a sport for more than 100 years and is becoming more popular as years pass. As the sport kicked off, it started off as male dominated until 1923 when women were finally allowed to cheer (Ninemire, 2019). Now that cheerleading has continued to grow, all around the country we have teams that compete against each other in competitions. Cheerleading falls under the criteria of a sport because it requires practice, competition, and rules/guidelines. In order for something to be a sport, it must require a lot of practice. If someone wants to get better at a sport, then they must become committed to practicing and want to learn new techniques. According to Taylor (2017), he states “the purpose of practice is to develop effective skills and habits that will translate into great performances on game day” (para. 6). A perfect example of a sport demanding practice would be football because they practice many hours a day in the heat wearing a ton of gear in order for them to perform well during games. Cheerleading is a sport that requires lots of practice and commitment in order for a person to get better. Studies have shown that on average, cheerleaders practice two to three times a week for four to six hours. Practicing with what was learned at practice will help cheerleaders learn their mistakes and how to fix them before game days or competitions. Retaining the information that they learned will be the key to success when the times comes. If sports fall under the criteria of requiring practice, then cheerleading would fall under that category of a sport. Sports require competition against others. In every sport, there is always going to be competition against someone. In order for a person to experience what a sport is like, they must

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go through rivalry against someone or others, and the outcome they are hoping for might not be what they expected. According to Saks, Maestu, and Muller (2017), “it is inevitable that in a competition, only one wins while the rest fail”, which implies that one sometimes has to deal with a loss sometimes in order to get better (para. 2). In every sport, a person or team has to lose at some point in order for them to realize that they need to practice more so they can know how to win against them next time they play each other. For example, baseball teams compete against other teams and sometimes there are teams that are better than them and they end up losing. Cheerleading is a sport that requires competition against others and the result for the winning team is that they end up winning a trophy. During competition, the team must show that they are the best and stand out from every other team. Cheerleaders are required to learn new routines in order to stay one step ahead of their opponents so that they can win. For example, in competition a team wants to make sure that their choreography is fast-paced, full of energy and has surprises so that their team will stand out from every other team and to the judges. Competition is taken very seriously in every sport because athletes spend countless hours practicing so that they won’t lose, and a perfect example of this is cheerleaders due to the fact that they practice so much just so that they can look the best in competitions. Therefore, if competition is needed to prove that something is a sport, then cheerleading would qualify under the criteria of being one. Lastly, a sport must require rules/guidelines. Every sport has some type of rules or guidelines that the players must follow. According to Williams (2017), “Rules provide an agreement of understanding to competition. In sports, rules define what is allowed or not allowed to occur during situations on and off the court [or field].” this allows officials to make sure that the teams or individuals are playing the sport correctly (para. 1). Rules/guidelines are enforced because sports want to prevent any injuries that may take place during any games. Players are

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expected to follow rules that are enforced by their coach such as following what they are told at practice, good attitude, and showing up to practices. For example, if a volleyball player must follow the coaches instructions during practice if they don’t want to get injured. In cheerleading, rules are required due to the fact that injury is very easy in this sport and they want to prevent it as much as possible. Cheer requires certain rules for routines in order for the team to succeed without any injuries. If there were no rules in cheerleading then the participants would end up not knowing their limits and end up hurting themselves. In competitions, there are certain rules that participants must follow in order for them to qualify to participate, and if they don’t follow the rules, they will end up being marked down by the judges. It is obvious that a sport must enforce rules, and it is clear that cheerleading definitely has rules. Therefore, cheerleading meets the criteria of a sport. Although there are claims that cheerleading is a sport, there is still dispute that makes sport fans disagree with the points of why cheerleading fits the category of a sport. People say that cheerleading must require a defined strategy and that the goal of the “sport” is to prove that one team’s stunts and routines are better than others (Betts, 2017).So, sports aren’t made to prove that one team is better than the other team during that game? A sport is about competition between two teams to prove who has better skill and techniques than the other team. Now many sports might not require stunts, but they do have routines that help the players get ready for games and help practice from their mistakes. Another reason why cheerleading wouldn’t fit the category of a “sport” is that cheerleading is made to entertain the crowd and support other sport teams (Roenigk, 2014). Cheerleading does entertain the crowd, but don’t sport teams such as football, baseball, and soccer do the same? A cheerleader is an athlete and puts the same amount of effort into their work as a football player does. When football players make a great play and

CHEERLEADING IS A SPORT their fans cheer for them, they get hyped up and they entertain the crowd with a dance or some sort of move. In the end, each side has a different viewpoint on what they consider a sport. In conclusion, cheerleading falls under the criteria of a sport because it requires practice, requires competition, and requires rules/guidelines. There is evidence supporting both sides of this topic, but no one can come to an understanding to be on the same page. Although many people have opinions of why it wouldn’t be considered a sport, people should take account of how it meets the requirements of a sport. Instead of looking at cheerleaders as participating in a recreational activity, people should view them as the respected athletes that they are.

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Delp, V. (2017). Competitive cheerleading. Retrieved from https://cheerleading.lovetoknow.com/Competitive_Cheerleading Harvey, D. (2019). Federal judge who rules cheerleading is not a sport under Title IX should toss his decision - NY Daily News. Retrieved from https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/federal-judge-rules-cheerleading-notsport-title-ix-toss-decision-article-1.465825 Ninemire, V. (2019) What are some surprising facts about cheerleading history? Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/cheerleading-history-4080643 Rodriguez, R. (2018). Cheerleading is a sport. Retrieved from http://www.teenink.com/nonfiction/sports/article/15172/Cheerleading-is-a-Sport/ Taylor, J. (2017). Practice is the foundation of athletic success. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-jim-taylor/practice-is-the-foundatio_b_9806606.html Williams, A. (2017). Part A: The importance of practicing sports. Retrieved from https://www.livestrong.com/article/436389-the-importance-of-practicing-sports/ Williams, A. (2017). Part B: The importance of rules in sports. Retrieved from https://www.livestrong.com/article/485675-the-importance-of-rules-in-sports/...