COMMENT: Memories from my cheer championship

As I walked onto the football field to interview the East Manatee Bulldogs Junior Midget cheerleading squad, a rush of nostalgia overcame me.

The girls were busy preparing for the 2011 Pop Warner Cheer & Dance Championships Dec. 7; and as I watched the group of seventh- and eighth-grade girls smile and giggle at the thought of what was to come, I was easily reminded of my own national championship experience.

I was 12 years old at the time, and I had been cheering for the Stow Youth Bulldogs (Ohio) for nearly four years. My squad already had been competing for a couple of years; but no matter how many competitions we’d been to or trophies we’d won, there was no bigger thrill than the day we stepped up onto the national stage to compete in the junior high division of the 1997 U.S. Spirit Open National Cheerleading Championship.

I can still feel the nerves and excitement we felt as we stood huddled together watching the other squads perform. After all, my teammates and I had spent the past six months practicing and competing for that moment.

After what seemed like hours — my squad was one of the last squads to perform — I grabbed my pompons and walked out onto the stage for the biggest competition of my life.

Through the spotlights, I saw thousands of spectators sitting in the stands awaiting our performance. ESPN camera crews were situated all around the stage to capture every second of our performance.

When our music began and my teammates started tumbling across the mat, I reveled in the moment. Those five minutes flew by, as my squad and I easily put together our best routine of the year.
Now we just had to sit and wait.

And what a wait it was. My teammates and I watched in anticipation as champions were crowned in the other divisions. Finally, it was our turn. We huddled together on stage and waited for the winners to be announced. It wasn’t until second place had been announced and our name still hadn’t been called that I began to wonder: Could it be? Could we have actually won?

It didn’t take long before I got my answer, as my teammates erupted into celebration around me. I stood looking around in awe and disbelief, before letting out a few celebratory screams of my own.

I only cheered for another year after that, but I’ve still got my championship jacket and ring, photos and a proclamation from the city of Stow to remind me of that day.