The Daily O’Collegian

There was plenty of reason to be happy. After all, the Oklahoma State Cowgirls had just upset the Baylor Bears in an overtime basketball clash.

So I smiled.

Inside my head, however, thoughts of displeasure swirled.

Not at the fact the basketball team had just won. I was dreading the cheerleading practice I had right after the game.

I was tired from cheering the game, but mostly I was concerned with the stabbing pain in my knees.

It felt as if someone had jabbed rusty ice picks under my kneecaps and was twisting them around. Tendinitis, to be exact.

With a national competition on the horizon, however, we had to practice.

And that is just part of the job and part of the proof that cheerleading is more than what fans see on the surface.

Behind the smiling faces and bouncing girls are pain and physical therapy.

Behind every cheerleader is the story of an injury.Junior cheerleader Carrie Allen has been taking hits since she was in grade school.

Allen said she has overcome sprained ankles and wrists, at least one major concussion, a variety of pulled muscles and seven chipped teeth.

On a coed cheerleading team, such as OSU’s, girls take on the roll of the flier— a term coined for their often “airborne” role on the squad.

Allen said this role puts girls at a high risk for injury.“Fliers have a more severe chance of getting hurt,” she said. “I’ve known girls who have broken limbs from flying.”

Allen said bases— the cheerleaders who throw or hold the fliers up— are also at risk.

“Bases have a better chance of injuries like black eyes and bloody noses,” she said.

Junior college transfer Matt Vanover also understands the risk for bases.

“I’ve had more injuries in cheerleading than in all the other sports combined,” he said.

Vanover lettered in track and basketball in high school but gave both up to pursue cheerleading at Barton County Community College in Great Bend, Kan.

He said he has suffered numerous back injuries and several broken fingers.

“Everything you could possibly think of in my body, I’ve hurt it one time or another in cheerleading,” he said.

Graduate assistant athletic trainer Dan Tebbe said cheerleading is considered a high-risk endeavor.

“Cheerleading as a sport has been put in the same risk category as football, ice hockey and rugby,” Tebbe said. “It’s definitely one of the more dangerous activities to participate in.”

Tebbe said cheerleaders are susceptible to several overuse injuries.

“Male cheerleaders seem to be more at risk for shoulder-type injuries because they do a lot of overhead activities like holding the girls up in the air,” he said.

“Girls are at risk for ankle and knee injuries because they do a lot of tumbling and high-impact landings.”Tebbe said the physical demands on the cheerleaders often are underestimated.

“If all the cheerleaders did was clap their hands and maybe throw up a couple stunts and a couple baskets at the games than they may not need weight lifting, training or conditioning in order to keep from getting those injuries.

“However, practicing for nationals and doing some of the more complex routines is lot more taxing on the body,” Tebbe said.

So why do cheerleaders continue to pursue such a high-risk, low-reward activity?

After all, OSU does not offer scholarships for cheerleading, and there is no lure of a professional contract.

Each cheerleader has their own reason.

“The risk factors cross my mind but the positives outweigh those factors,” Allen said. “It’s fun and it keeps me in shape.”

Vanover sees things from a different angle.

“I like to be around the team,” he said, “but what I really strive for is to get that (national championship) ring.”

Vanover and the rest of the OSU cheerleaders will have their chance Thursday and Friday when they compete for the national title in Daytona Beach, Fla.