One Too Many

Cheerleading Has a Higher Injury Rate Than Other Sports

Photo by Logan Weaver on Unsplash

Cheerleaders get injured more often than athletes from other sports, this is because it can be easy to fall while in a stunt or while tumbling. The most common injuries in cheerleading are strains, sprains, fractures, and concussions. Fractures are most common in stunts, whereas strains and sprains occur more during tumbling or acrobatic tricks. Studies show that 89% of fractures occur during stunts, falling is the main cause for these injuries. It is easy for bases to catch the wrong grips or for flyers to bail out of a stunt which makes it harder to hit the stunt and keep everyone safe.

“I have gotten 4 or 5 injuries from cheer,” sophomore Leyton Gardner said. “People tend to fall in stunts or while tumbling and get injured easily.”

The National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research found that collegiate cheerleading makes up for 70.5% of all female catastrophic injuries and high school cheerleading makes up for 65.2%. On average, a cheerleader has 3.8 injuries throughout their career.

While it is easy to be tackled in football, hit by a ball in soccer or basketball or to fall in volleyball, it is still easier to get injured in cheerleading. This is because of the acrobatics that are involved in stunts and tumbling. If an athlete is not stretched or warmed up well, it will be easier to tear a muscle. If an athlete is holding the foot the wrong way in a stunt, it can cause the entire stunt to fall. 

“I broke my ankle when I was tumbling. I was doing a full and my ankle shattered,” junior Regan Mayfield said.  “I think cheer has a higher injury rate than other sports because we are holding people above our heads and flipping around.”

Injuries that happen during practice or at a game can also be more severe depending on the situation. For example, if it is too hot outside, athletes can be at risk of overheating. The heat makes it hard to stunt and tumble because it makes you tired. It could also be too cold for practice. When it is cold, it is hard to get loose and stretched. It is also very risky to stunt or tumble during the rain, cheerleaders' hands or feet could easily slip causing them to fall.

“I got a hip injury due to over stretching. I stretch a lot so I can pull my body positions,” freshman Ally Fasig said. “I think cheer has a higher injury rate than some sports because of how much you are getting thrown into the air and the risks that come with that if you are not caught and the risks of falling in tumbling. There is just a lot of things that cause injuries in cheerleading.”

For a safe practice, stunting on mats would decrease the possibility of getting injured. It would be better to fall on to a soft mat than to fall onto the ground. Water breaks are also needed to hydrate the cheerleaders so that they can continue to stunt or tumble with full strength. Tumbling is not smart to do when feeling weak because it is harder to control your body.