It is now a well known fact that cheerleading injuries have increased significantly with the number of catastrophic injuries topping all of girls’ sports. This is based on the research released in the 25th Annual Catastrophic Injury Report (2009) out of the University of North Carolina.
Local and national media have focused their attention on stories of young girls who have sustained catastrophic injuries (multiple concussions, spinal cord injuries). With all of the attention on the high number of injuries, researchers have recently turned their attention on what the causes are behind the statistics.
Factors Contributing to Catastrophic Injuries in Cheer
Some of the factors leading to the high number of catastrophic injuries include:
- unqualified coaches not trained in gymnastics, stunts, and safe tumbling progressions and without proper coaching certification
- cheerleaders performing stunts that they are not trained or prepared for
- lack of emergency medical plans in the event of a catastrophic injury
- stunts performed on hard surfaces including gym floors, grass, asphalt, rubberized track
- evolution of sideline spirit squads into competitive cheer and stunt teams without appropriate evolution of safety standards and guidelines
- lack of access to on-site certified athletic trainers for cheer and dance program athletes
The Spirit Consultants
One new cheer and dance organization in California has been established for the sole purpose of improving safety in the sport of cheer and dance by focusing on “training coaches and administrators, educating them on the newest safety procedures, rules and training techniques” (TSC Press Release, March 22, 2010).
The Spirit Consultants have partnered with the National Safety Cheer Foundation (advocates for cheer safety) and the California High School Cheer and Dance Association to improve cheerleading safety in the state of California. While one of TSC’s goals is to improve the training of coaches, a second one is to offer safe indoor summer camps.
Offering Safer Summer Cheer and Dance Camps
Most cheer and dance camps held in the summer (in California) are held outdoors on college campuses. Thousands of young cheerleaders are learning tumbling and advanced stunts (basket tosses and pyramid stunts) on hard surfaces (hard dirt and grass surfaces).
While at first glance, stunting on grass would seem safe, recent research published in the Journal of Athletic Training revealed that dry dirt, grass (tall or short), rubberized track, and artificial turf are no safer than a traditional hardwood gym floor (Shields, B. & Smith, G., November 2009).
This was based on critical height research using the latest biomechanics research methodologies available. Critical height is “an approximation of the fall height below which a life-threatening head impact injury would not be expected to occur” (Shields, B. & Smith, G., November 2009).
With this knowledge, TSC wanted to offer safe camps for cheerleaders and dancers. Towards this goal, TSC is offering summer camps in California using air-conditioned indoor facilities. According to TSC Director, David Kirschner, the organization will also be bringing in mats for the athletes to stunt on (Kirschner, April 8, 2010).
These two changes in cheerleading summer camps (air-conditioned facility and practice mats) reduce two primary concerns for cheer and dance athletes in the summer. The first is heat illness.
Practicing indoors and out of the reach of the sun will reduce the incidence of heat illness (including sun burns and dehydration). Instead of practicing for hours out under the hot California sun and heat, these athletes will be working out indoors in cool conditions.
Another first for summer cheer camps is that these camps will be utilizing mats for their athletes to stunt on. According to Kirschner, mats will be shipped in to the event site (Ontario Convention Center) for the sole purpose of providing a safe surface for the athletes (Kirschner, April 8, 2010).
Providing Appropriate Medical Care
Another step towards safety in the TSC camps is the provision of sports medicine professionals through the hiring of certified athletic trainers for each camp. While many cheer camps provide an emergency medical technician (EMT) to provide medical care for their athletes, TSC is hiring certified athletic trainers who specialize in the care, prevention, and treatment of athletic injuries.
The training to become an EMT includes the completion of one course at a community college. The preparation to become a certified athletic trainer includes a four year Bachelor of Science degree in athletic training from a nationally accredited university.
The Spirit Consultants and its partners have teamed up to improve the future of cheerleading in California. The offering of indoor air-conditioned camps with safety mats and the provision of appropriate medical professionals should be applauded in the cheer industry and be supported by administrators, coaches and parents of these athletes.
References:
ABC News. (January 5, 2010). The Most Dangerous Sport of all may be Cheerleading. ABC Nightline.
Kirschner, D. (April 8, 2010). Personal Phone Interview. Director of The Spirit Consultants, Studio City, California.
Mueller, F., and Cantu, R. (August 19, 2008). National Center for Catastrophic Injury: 25th Annual Report. University of North Carolina.
National Cheer Safety Foundation. (June 29, 2009). Experts Call for Congressional Hearing on Cheer Injuries. Press Release: http://www.nationalcheersafety.com.
Shields, B. & Smith, G. (November, 2009). The Potential for Brain Injury on Selected Surfaces Used by Cheerleaders. Journal of Athletic Training 44(6).
The Spirit Consultants. (March 22, 2010). The National Cheer Safety Foundation, the California HS Cheer and Dance Association and The Spirit Consultants Announce their Strategic Partnership to Improve Cheerleading Safety. Press Release: http://www.thespiritconsultants.com.
Zeigler, T. (February 10, 2010). Preventing Catastrophic Injuries in Cheerleading. http://www.sportsmd.com.
Terry Zeigler - Educating through writing with over twenty-five years of experience as a Kinesiology Professor and Certified Athletic Trainer.
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