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St. FX Cheer Shares Championship Mettle in their Community
2016-04-23
The St. Francis Xavier Cheer team has made a habit of winning and this year, paid it forward, sharing their skills in the community.
The St. FX Cheer Team has been on quite a ride the last little while. Over the past 15 months, we have received a fully paid bid to both the 2016 and 2017 “International Cheerleading Union (ICU) School World Championships” in Orlando, two Metro Athletics City Championships, and recently won our second ASAA Provincial Championship in a row capping our season with a 10-competition winning streak that started in 2015.
This year, our team was made up of 16 female athletes with varying levels of cheerleading experience. Our volunteer coaches and athletes spend 8-10 hours per week practicing from September until the middle of April – by far the longest season of any high school sport. For those of you who are not familiar with cheerleading, a routine is two-and-a-half minutes long of constant movement and physical exertion and must consist of multiple different elements including:
In conjunction with these elements, each team is scored based on the routine composition and overall impression of the performance. Each of these elements requires its own set of skills and the biggest challenge is bringing them all together to execute in a competition routine. YouTube is a wonderful tool and I encourage all of you to watch some Cheerleading videos to develop an appreciation of the amount of athleticism, hard work, and skill that is involved in executing these routines.
St. FX is graduating eight of its cheer team’s athletes this spring - that is a huge turn over, but it is encouraging to see many of those grade 12s, along with previously graduated athletes, already committing to volunteer coaching positions both at St. FX and other schools. These girls have worked so hard this year and they deserve all of the recognition they can get from their fellow students and athletes – it is truly remarkable to watch what they have been able to accomplish.
One of the most exciting times of the year for the team was when they hosted the children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews of St. FX staff members and spent time teaching some basic cheerleading skills, but most importantly being active and having fun. There were over 20 young boys and girls that came and they spent an hour having an absolute blast – both the young ones and our cheer team! It was a chance for staff members to catch up, the young children to experience something new, and the cheer team to bond as a group. It was a lot of fun.
Another year down of giving up week nights and weekends and another season full of successes. St. FX is very thankful for the hard work and dedication put in by the athletes and the volunteer coaches, without them our program would not be able to run. Many Metro Athletics member teams rely on volunteer coaches to function and we should all take the time to appreciate their time and expertise. From the St. FX school community, congratulations to the team and coaches on a record-setting season and we look forward to seeing our new team next year as we compete against other Metro Athletics teams from Edmonton and area. Go Rams!
- Ryan Stephens
This year, our team was made up of 16 female athletes with varying levels of cheerleading experience. Our volunteer coaches and athletes spend 8-10 hours per week practicing from September until the middle of April – by far the longest season of any high school sport. For those of you who are not familiar with cheerleading, a routine is two-and-a-half minutes long of constant movement and physical exertion and must consist of multiple different elements including:
- Stunts
- Pyramid
- Tosses
- Tumbling
- Jumps
- Cheer
- Dance
In conjunction with these elements, each team is scored based on the routine composition and overall impression of the performance. Each of these elements requires its own set of skills and the biggest challenge is bringing them all together to execute in a competition routine. YouTube is a wonderful tool and I encourage all of you to watch some Cheerleading videos to develop an appreciation of the amount of athleticism, hard work, and skill that is involved in executing these routines.
St. FX is graduating eight of its cheer team’s athletes this spring - that is a huge turn over, but it is encouraging to see many of those grade 12s, along with previously graduated athletes, already committing to volunteer coaching positions both at St. FX and other schools. These girls have worked so hard this year and they deserve all of the recognition they can get from their fellow students and athletes – it is truly remarkable to watch what they have been able to accomplish.
One of the most exciting times of the year for the team was when they hosted the children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews of St. FX staff members and spent time teaching some basic cheerleading skills, but most importantly being active and having fun. There were over 20 young boys and girls that came and they spent an hour having an absolute blast – both the young ones and our cheer team! It was a chance for staff members to catch up, the young children to experience something new, and the cheer team to bond as a group. It was a lot of fun.
Another year down of giving up week nights and weekends and another season full of successes. St. FX is very thankful for the hard work and dedication put in by the athletes and the volunteer coaches, without them our program would not be able to run. Many Metro Athletics member teams rely on volunteer coaches to function and we should all take the time to appreciate their time and expertise. From the St. FX school community, congratulations to the team and coaches on a record-setting season and we look forward to seeing our new team next year as we compete against other Metro Athletics teams from Edmonton and area. Go Rams!
- Ryan Stephens