Norfolk County will have something to cheer about at the inaugural Norfolk Invitational Cheerleading Competition.
Advertisement 2
Article content
Doors open at Simcoe Composite School on Wednesday, March 27 at 6 pm and the four-school cheer competition starts at 6:30 pm with teams from Simcoe Composite School, Delhi, Waterford and Valley Heights.
Article content
The audience is invited.
It will be full stunting cheerleading, said Alison High, Valley Heights’ cheer coach and VHSS principal, featuring intermediate Level 2 skills. Those can include non-twisting tosses, pyramids, cradles, rolls, and twists.
“All of the things you kind of expect,” said High, noting the format will be similar to old NSSAA spring competitions. “We will have the full mat (gymnastics) floors.”
Full stunting was removed from cheer routines at the 2023 Norfolk County Fair Young Canada Day competition on the track in front of the grandstand for safety reasons.
Advertisement 3
Article content
“Our primary priority has to be the safety of our athletes and with the fair, you never know what you’re going to get,” said High. “So the fair was different, it was a change, and it will take some getting used to. We’re really trying to focus on the spirit part of it. I think now that we kind of know what it can look like, we can work with that.
“And we can also look forward to events like this (spring competition). Basically the coaches and staff advisors in Norfolk got together and said ‘we want to do something – something that’s local that lots of people can come out and watch.’ So we made a plan it’s all coming together next Wednesday.”
Bringing back the indoor spring competition has extended the cheer season, giving teams an opportunity to train several months rather than just the 3-4 weeks leading up to the fair.
Advertisement 4
Article content
“To do cheer safely, it is a skill progression. You can’t start ‘big’ because if they don’t have the basic skills, it’s too risky. It takes time to build those skills, and build them right, so that when you do push your difficulty level, you can do it safely. They have to have those basics. It’s all about teamwork and trust and working together.
“This is a great opportunity – we’ve had a few months to work on stunts and up our game a bit. I think all of our teams are really looking forward to being able to show off what they’ve been working on.”
At Valley Heights, more than half the cheer team is in Grade 9.
“I see a ton of potential in the group I’ve got right now,” said High, who is assisted by VHSS teacher Danielle Schonberger. “I’ve got a couple that are graduating this year – and we’ll miss them a lot because they’ve been super solid for a few years – but I’ve got some great Grade 11s coming up… and my 9s and 10s are new, but they are so keen and they’re willing to try new things. They work so hard – they always ask for more practices. And they’re such a nice, nice group, so great to work with.”
In recent years OFSAA approved cheerleading as regional event, and several Norfolk teams plan to compete in Welland on April 4, said High.
“It sounds like they’re getting some really great response from school teams. Hopefully more events like that will pop up in the coming years.”
Article content