Yay! I love the people here saying cheerleading is a sport! (Not!)
Now, It may be demanding to lift 100 pounds with 2,3,4 people, but you ever tried stopping (<---keyword) 200, going fast? No? really? i thought you guys were saying don't knock it till you try it. Cheerleading just doesn't match up, mainly because there isn't anyone trying to STOP you doing that flip. I'll give you flexibility, you need that, but strength? hardly. demanding? nope. 3 minutes at a time? OH MY GOD! 3???!!! oh wait, soccer players play the whole game, no breaks,
football players play for 5-10 (offense or defense, they switch).
Hockey players play 30secs - a min at a time BUT WAIT! 30 secs later, they're back out there, taking CHECKS,
knocking around a little disk (hand-eye coordination, anyone?). Ever try stopping a 3v1 rush against a good team? Ever played lacrosse? let me sum it up: you've got a stick, there is a net on the end, there is a ball, get ball into opposing goal, use stick to hit, slash, crosscheck, anything you need, to get that ball in their goal. Don't talk about injury threat, 200 pounds HURTS, bad. falling into 4 feet into arms doesn't. Sure there are accidents, but that happens in every sport. Risk of death is not higher for
cheerleaders then for other athletes. 200 pounds of muscle hitting the wrong place can mess with heads, spines, and any loose limbs. Cheerleading may be hard, but it's nothing in comparison to all the other true sports out there.
Oh yes and,
you are not all stupid, that stereotype comes from the fact that no brains are needed to cheerlead.