Is Cheerleading a Sport?

[Pryderi]

[bluesbassman]

1. It's dancing.

Acrobatic dancing yes, but dancing nonetheless.

[Pryderi]

3. What's your definition of a sport? n/t

[bluesbassman]

6. Clearly defined and gaugeable rules to select a winner.

While I fully recognize and appreciate the skill, conditioning and commitment required for competitive cheeleading, the judging is far too subjective for me to classify it as a "sport".

[Ptah]

18. Like boxing?

[pokerfan]

25. Exactly like a boxing match

that isn't decided by a KO or a TKO.

[Pryderi]

22. ...or gymnastics? Diving?

[bluesbassman]

26. No, more like Ballet.

If you want to classify ballet as a sport, then I'll concede that Cheerleading is a sport. :)

[rrneck]

2. As much as I would like to say no

it probably is.

[some guy]

4. I'll say yes.

It's certainly more athletic than poker.

They have cheerleading competitions, so they must have worked out a means of scoring and determining winners and losers.

[Maine-ah]

17. heh, it's more athletic than bowling

and I think that is considered a sport. It's more athletic than NASCAR too. :)

[JonLP24]

24. Poker is a "mind sport"

There are different kinds of sports such as "motorsports".

[blogslut]

5. It is an athletic endeavor

Cheerleaders participate in competitions.

I'm not a sports person so there's that.

[Lucian]

7. The real question: is cheerleading still relevant?

[Ron Green]

8. Ah, yes - I remember TV Jiggle Sports from the 1970's.

Now them was some sports worth watching.

:9

[LeftinOH]

9. It's certainly more of a "sport" than race car driving. n/t

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

10. Sure, if Ice Dancing and Boxing are Olympic sports

both have outcomes determined by judges' observations.

To me, sports should be beer-enabled, so I like curling and target shooting as Olympic sports.

[lunatica]

11. There are competitions for cheerleading groups

And they're obviously athletes

[Iggo]

12. Yeah, but I'd like to see a little more defense...heheheh.

Let's just say that a competitive cheerleader is at least ten times the athlete that a golfer is, and maybe not quite the athlete that a professional wrestler is. Out of those three things, it's the cheerleading that comes closest to being a sport.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

13. they sustain "sports" injuries, so yeah. its a sport.

[cbdo2007]

14. I have a cheerleader fetish so....who cares if it's a sport or not??

[Iggo]

16. And there's that. (n/t)

[OmahaBlueDog]

15. It's become a combination of dance and gymnastics

It's as much of a sport as any of the "judged" sports (i.e. figure skating, ice dancing, etc.)

[bigwillq]

19. Yes

They have competitions. There's game plans and strategy involved. I think it's a sport.

[we can do it]

20. Hell No - Neither Is Bowling, Golf, Car Racing or Billiards

[Pryderi]

23. Cheerleading requires alot more athletic ability than what you mentioned. Why are

what you mentioned not considered sports?

[Taverner]

21. If NASCAR, Curling, Bowling and Ice Dancing can be sports, then def Cheer

Cheerleading is not what it was when I was in school (a chance for the popular girls to show their stuff)

It's become hyper competitive, and the judging has become much more quantitative