High school cheerleaders in Conn. ask for more conservative uniforms

It’s a topic that comes up every now and then: Are high school cheerleaders’ uniforms too skimpy?

According to the Yahoo blog Pep Rally, a squad in Connecticut recently asked the superintendent of schools to make their uniforms less revealing. Namely, the cheerleaders were concerned with the midriffs of their uniforms.

From Pep Rally:

Medina and fellow seniors insist that the Central uniforms do not meet regulations that require cheerleader uniforms to cover an athlete’s midsection when they stand at attention.

“It really hurts our self esteem,” Bridgeport Central senior Ariana Mesaros told the Board of Education, according to the Post. “I am embarrassed to stand up here dressed like this. Is this really how you want Bridgeport to be represented?”

As noted by NBC Connecticut, the Bridgeport cheerleaders’ plea comes on the heels of a recent study of college cheerleaders, which found that college cheerleaders whose uniforms exposed midriffs faced a significantly higher risk of developing eating disorders.

For its part, the Bridgeport Board of Education is moving quickly to quell the controversy, with the assistant superintendent of secondary schools telling the Post that black bodysuits would be purchased for the Central cheerleaders to wear under their uniforms.

Still, the incident raises a troubling disparity between what cheerleaders are expected to look like, and what might be most healthy for them. While the eating disorder study focused on college cheerleaders, there’s little doubt that the findings are significant for high school cheerleaders, too.

What’s your take? Are high school uniforms too skimpy? Should high school cheerleaders be allowed to show their midriffs?

Related: Check out our selection of cheerleading uniforms.

Leader-Post: Cheerleading is no laughing matter

From the Regina Leader-Post in south-central Canada, here is an interesting take on the cheerleading lifestyle.

Sometimes cheerleaders get the short end of the stick. They work hard, putting in grueling hours of practice, to be called an “accessory to sporting events.”

As this author argues, many cheerleaders work harder than the athletes themselves.

Here is an excerpt:

Gone are the days where cheerleaders paraded around in short skirts and twirled their pigtails on the sidelines at football games. They are no longer merely an accessory to sporting events. Cheerleaders have emerged from the stereotypes that are still present in some spectators’ minds, and proved that they deserve the title of “athletes” just as much as the people on the field.

No other sport parallels cheerleading. Despite the fact it incorporates hints of dancing and gymnastics, cheerleading is set apart because it includes aspects like throwing people two or more storeys high, and completing sequences of stunts suspended in mid-air. Many of today’s all-star football or basketball players would not be able to do the basic stunts cheerleaders execute every day.

Cheerleaders go through practices and conditioning classes that are many times more gruelling than the majority of teams participating in athletics that are looked upon as “real sports”. Unlike sports such as basketball, cheerleading is not something you can make mistakes in. There is no opportunity to come back from a defeat.

You can read the entire article here.

Related: Browse our selection of cheerleading equipment.

Leader-Post: Cheerleading is no laughing matter

From the Regina Leader-Post in south-central Canada, here is an interesting take on the cheerleading lifestyle.

Sometimes cheerleaders get the short end of the stick. They work hard, putting in grueling hours of practice, to be called an “accessory to sporting events.”

As this author argues, many cheerleaders work harder than the athletes themselves.

Here is an excerpt:

Gone are the days where cheerleaders paraded around in short skirts and twirled their pigtails on the sidelines at football games. They are no longer merely an accessory to sporting events. Cheerleaders have emerged from the stereotypes that are still present in some spectators’ minds, and proved that they deserve the title of “athletes” just as much as the people on the field.

No other sport parallels cheerleading. Despite the fact it incorporates hints of dancing and gymnastics, cheerleading is set apart because it includes aspects like throwing people two or more storeys high, and completing sequences of stunts suspended in mid-air. Many of today’s all-star football or basketball players would not be able to do the basic stunts cheerleaders execute every day.

Cheerleaders go through practices and conditioning classes that are many times more gruelling than the majority of teams participating in athletics that are looked upon as “real sports”. Unlike sports such as basketball, cheerleading is not something you can make mistakes in. There is no opportunity to come back from a defeat.

You can read the entire article here.

Related: Browse our selection of cheerleading equipment.

Bringing up a new generation of cheerleaders

Here’s a fun, Monday-brightening story from just outside of Seattle.

It’s about high school cheerleaders spending some time in the community, teaching a group of youngsters the tricks of the trade.

It’s always great to hear about things like this. It’s inspiring for the younger kids, and it helps teach the high schoolers the value of spending time and giving back to the community.

Here’s an excerpt:

“I just think it’s great for her to do dance and hang out with the girls,” Snoqualmie parent Caroline Gates said. “I think it’s good for them to try all different things.”

Parent Kristi Hazen said her daughter saw the cheerleaders in the Festival at Mount Si and decided cheerleading was for her. Hazen herself was a cheerleader in high school, and said she helped her daughter review the cheers in the car ride to the Mini Cheer Camp.

They weren’t the only ones rehearsing for the football game performance.

“I’m learning some cheers,” 6-year-old Ava Adams said as her friends’ mother, Kerry Anderson, nodded and laughed.

“They’ve been practicing in the car on the way,” Anderson said.

It’s a cool story. Check it out at the SnoValley Star.

Related: We’ve got youth cheerleading uniforms for youngsters looking to get started in cheer.