<p>Basketball, field hockey??</p>
<p>Nope</p>
<p>[Cheerleading</a> is leading cause of catastrophic injury in young women | University of Michigan Health System](<a href=“http://www2.med.umich.edu/prmc/media/newsroom/details.cfm?ID=1237]Cheerleading”>http://www2.med.umich.edu/prmc/media/newsroom/details.cfm?ID=1237)</p>
<p>Cheerleading is definitely a risky sport…the competitive routines today can really add risk to being injured. </p>
<p>One of my D’s sports (her whole life including in college) was ski racing and that was not without much risk either, though I am happy to say that my D’s entire career as a ski racer was without any injury. Phew.</p>
<p>^That’s pretty amazing, soozievt. I’ve seen some horrendous ski racing accidents on TV and figured that most participants had one bad injury in their career (spoken by someone who doesn’t like to go fast on skis).</p>
<p>But definitely cheerleading would have been on my list. And probably gymnastics–too much stress on young bodies.</p>
<p>idea to be light and thus not eating properly yet stress the body</p>
<p>what we risk for locks and applause</p>
<p>My D was on the pole vaulting team as a freshman in HS, several times I thought I would hyperventilate while at a meet. I did relearn Lamaze breathing techniques though. ;)</p>
<p>My D’s circus troupe has her juggle with fire and perform on stilts across cobblestone streets. I made sure she got health insurance and told her she was brave. Her grandma doesn’t know the full story.</p>
<p>D (former gymnast) just joined a competitive cheer squad. (Yes, she did, if you read my prior thread.) What scares me more is school cheer - the standing backs on the gym floor without mats, etc. D had a really bad tumbling fall yesterday, but it was on a regulation floor that had some give. On a concrete floor it would have been catastrophic.</p>
<p>Having read an article on this topic a few years ago, I knew the answer. In the article, it was pointed out how cheerleading is classified as a club and so is not entitled to the resources, nor required to abide by the safety guidelines, of a sport. </p>
<p>It’s sad to read another article years later that draws the same conclusions.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree with Pugmadkate. The problems come from head injuries esp. when high in the air and during the tosses. Not about being light and improper eating.</p>
<p>In my years as a cheerleader, our squad had two broken bones (an ankle and an arm; I guess that’s three, really, because it was both forearm bones), and thankfully no head injuries or anything like that. Mostly we just got giant bruises and sprains and such – but we had the good fortune to practice in the gymnastics room, with a spring floor and lots of mats. In addition, we’re also pretty careful about the way we go about learning new stunts.</p>
<p>Still, I’m going to have a fun time walking when I’m sixty, I think, because of all the chronic injuries I’ve sustained after seven years as a cheerleader.</p>
<p>ellemenope, I feel really fortunate that D never was injured in ski racing which she has done starting as a tot through to senior year in college. I like how someone else mentioned using Lamaze and I sometimes could hardly breathe when watching a race and only kept my inner mantra of “please get to the finish line safely…do not care your time!” Many people we know have been injured, some severely. And there were injuries even on her college team and at many races we have attended (where the skier came down in the patrol sled…and AFTER the injured racers…my D’s turn would still be coming up and I am not sure how a racer removes seeing the injuries right before their own run). </p>
<p>Ironically, my D rarely fell in a race even. I do recall when attending the National Collegiate Ski Championships when I flew out to Idaho to see her for her one minute race run (LOL) that of all the races in her life, her ski released near the top of the course high up on the mountain and all I could see was that she was out and down out of the course and my heart was palpitating until I saw her body get up (having a ski release at a high speed can be dangerous). It was an unfortunate equipment failure as can happen in the sport and she got to race for only a few seconds and was out of the event. But it is a risky sport and she was particularly skilled at and enjoyed the high speed events the most! So, I have endured watching her careen down the hill at break neck speed and it is amazing that she has had NO injuries of any kind ever and she has raced a real lot. Now, as for me, I blew out my knee skiing and had to go down the mountain in a sled. :)</p>
<p>Cheer leading is not a “sport” by any means. Incorrectly supervised, it can be a dangerous activity, just like bungee jumping. </p>
<p>It’s for show.</p>
<p>Cheerleading in many Florida high schools is now a competitive sport recognized by the Fl. High School Athletic Assn. governing body. </p>
<p>[FHSAA.org:</a> Competitive Cheerleading](<a href=“http://www.fhsaa.org/ch/]FHSAA.org:”>http://www.fhsaa.org/ch/)</p>
<p>toblin, tell me - a very unfit, lazy person who can’t run a 100 yards can bungee jump. Cheerleading requires fitness, training and skills. To me, anything that requires athleticism and training is a sport: cheerleading, rhythmic gymnastics, synchro swimming, ski jumping, etc. It doesn’t mean I endorse it or go crazy about it, but it is a sport.</p>
<p>Add to the list of dangerous HS sports - springboard diving. I’ve seen one HS diving accident, and that’s one too many for me to stomach.</p>
<p>Competitive cheerleading is indeed a sport that involves a lot of athleticism. We don’t have it in our region but I have seen competitions on TV and it is not all show but lots of skills and fitness and sport involved.</p>
<p>ok. my immediate response to the ? as to what is the most dangerous sport for girls is…love</p>
<p>I was kinda thinking sports my D’s have been involved in. Horse riding/jumping, rugby, soccer, luge, snowboarding, skiing, surfing…</p>
<p>but I would agree gymnastics and cheer have athletes pushing their bodies farther than they are designed to be pushed under the guise of competition.
I prefer team sports myself.</p>
<p>A very common injury for girl athletes is acl injuries in sports like soccer, basketball, etc. where knees get stressed running and stopping.</p>
<p>Speaking about diving injuries, Florida high schools until the 1920’s or so had a diving event at competitions of who could jump from the highest point off towers into a pool. Guess they stopped doing it after wising up and realizing it was insane. If one looks in the old Florida high school record books you can find past champions in the event that was wisely discontinued.</p>
<p>Cheerleading is a sport. I find it rather odd that someone would allege otherwise. </p>
<p>lizard, Just hearing about that makes me nervous, thank goodness is was discontinued.</p>
<p>Cheerleading is certainly a sport- my D played soccer as a young girl but switched to cheer in high school. It took a lot of dedication and teamwork- stunts needed to be carefully planned and all members in the stunt need to be present to perform the stunt to make it safe</p>