The nerves begin to set in as the FC cheer team waits anxiously on deck. Poms rustle as several of the girls’ hands shake from anticipation. The beat of their hearts almost drowns out the loudspeaker as the announcer welcomes the Fresno Christian Varsity Eagles to the mat.
Cheer, primarily unrecognized as a sport, includes performances, cheers, stunting, dances, events, late nights and early practices. Cheerleaders face stereotypes in popular movies and media that depict the athletes as “ditsy” and “talentless.” The athleticism behind the sport is rarely acknowledged.
Coach Hope Villines has been advising and coaching cheerleaders for 25 years. Despite the opinion of those around her, Villines’ conviction that cheer is a sport remains unwavering. When asked the question “What justifies cheerleading as a sport?” Villines consistently fights to show just how much work and skill goes into cheerleading.
“Over the last 25 years, I’ve had to answer this question a lot, and answering it today in 2025 is easier for me because CIF and NCAA recognize it as an actual sport,” Villines said. “But here’s the thing, what people don’t understand is there are a multitude of divisions of cheer with different aspects, but the one thing that all of those areas of cheer have in common is how physical the sport is, how competitive it is and how you absolutely have to be in shape and prepared to do this sport.”
Cheerleading is a year-round sport. Preparation for the season begins with tryouts in spring. Athletes give it their all, performing a pre-choreographed dance and cheer in front of judges. They are expected to display two jumps and execute at least a cartwheel. The girls go through these various trials in hopes of being a part of something special, a family with whom they can face adversities and challenges, becoming better at the sport they love. The three-day wait feels like a lifetime, but receiving the text saying, “CONGRATULATIONS and WELCOME to the Cheer Team!!” makes the delay and practicing worth it.
Despite the Fresno heat waves plaguing summer, the rigorous practice schedule begins to strengthen the cheerleaders, improving the girls’ stamina for the approaching competition season. Practicing with a new team that possesses a different set of skills than the year before is a challenge for each athlete; they are expected to adjust quickly and collaborate. After countless hours of practice and vigorous training camps crammed into the summer months, the true challenge begins. Cheer athletes dedicate two 10-hour days to learning competition routines that will be practiced to perfection until competition day.
Simultaneously, school begins and the girls prepare to jump into football season, where they will be crowd leaders on the sidelines at every home game. The balance of life and athletics tests the girls’ time-management skills as their schedules become chaotically crowded. Cheering others on to victory, attending every game and practicing for performances leaves the girls exhausted. The months of laborious stunting and cardio continue on, all contributing towards success in the most important season for cheer, competition season.
Competition sets off the extensive early practices as the team strives to perfect the routine that will be showcased to hundreds of people. Practicing precision while safely lifting another person overhead, constantly sprinting across the mat, tossing girls and catching them, trusting that the people under you will catch you and more are all things that go into a routine. A team has two minutes and 30 seconds to give it their all and perform their routine to the best of their ability.
Spectators may not realize the pure exhaustion that results from yelling, jumping and lifting. Cheer athletes are expected to smile and have substantial facials, consisting of wide eyes and dramatic movements, even while they are struggling to breathe and dealing with the nerves of being watched by hundreds of pairs of eyes.
Cheer combines tumbling, stunting, dancing and crowd leading into one performance, yet is still one of the most overlooked sports of all. Cheer has its own competitive season, yet still reaches out to support other sports, attending and being engaged in every game.
After 15 years of cheering, Chloe Johnson, ‘25, recognizes the physical and mental resilience required to cheer that goes unnoticed.
“Cheer is majorly overlooked as a sport because it has been given a reputation in movies and shows that never show what cheerleaders actually do and train for,” Johnson said. “It’s an all around sport; we do hard routines, we tumble, we stunt and more, and people don’t see the behind the scenes and the routines we actually do. Our routines and training really show that cheer is a sport, and if people ever were to try it, they would realize how difficult it actually is.”
Athletes who are new to the sport face the challenges of acclimating to the consistent training required in stunting. Taking time away from the sport could mean starting fresh and relearning the skills that make up cheerleading. Consistency is key to the sport that is stereotyped as “shaking pom-poms.”
Freshman Riley Price joined the Fresno Christian Varsity Cheer Team for the ‘24-‘25 school year after cheering for two years consecutively. Price is a base, lifting and supporting flyers, and tumbler, utilizing her skills to contribute to the team.
“I’ve cheered in 4th grade and from 7th grade to now, and the time commitment is a challenge since I also do volleyball, which overlaps with competition and basketball season,” Price said. “Stunting and doing full-out routines are exhausting, and just like any other sport, we compete against other teams, which takes a lot of stamina and energy.”
Cheerleaders, no matter the age, school or abilities, face stereotypes and lack athletic validation by many, despite all of the hard work that goes into the sport. Cheerleading consists of more dedication and ability than spectators often acknowledge.
To read more from The Feather visit Fresno Christian community mourns the loss of senior Lily Kahrimanian or Boys basketball and girls soccer head to state playoffs.
