WCPSS to add stunt to sport offerings

Madeline Murdock, News Editor

5, 6, 7, 8! During the spring of the 2014-15 school year a new competitive team sport called STUNT will be introduced.

STUNT is derived from cheerleading and removes the crowd-leading elements and replaces them with the more technical and athletic elements of cheer including partner stunts, basket tosses, group jumps and tumbling.

STUNT was created by USA Cheer as a way for universities and high schools to meet the Title IX requirements of a college sport, while preserving the ways of traditional cheerleading, as a part of its NCAA Emerging Sport initiative.

Title IX states that no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.

Within the Title IX requirements, it states that traditional cheerleading lacks a “head-to-head” scoring situation and therefore it is not considered a sport.

However, based on STUNT’s structure, administration, team preparation and competition, it will qualify as a sport.
Teams are judged on technical elements of cheerleading.

There is one set of rules and one scoring system that is followed during every game.

Judges are used to evaluate the execution of routines and the technique used within it.

“Wake County came under the Title IX gun a few years ago, and Stunt and Lacrosse became options to increase the number of girls participating in sports,” Robin Faulkner, varsity cheerleading coach said.

Although the elements of STUNT and traditional cheer are different, the way school holds tryouts will be the same.
Participants will need to know how to stunt, tumble and jump. However, currently STUNT is a female only sport.

“I think that STUNT would help the cheer program. A lot of people want to cheer that haven’t before and it would help,” varsity cheerleader, junior Lexi Hill said.

By adding the STUNT team to the cheer program, many athletic opportunities are provided for girls who otherwise wouldn’t participate in athletics.

“I think the new STUNT program will be something fresh for our school and cheerleading teams. I think it will be something that girls will want the opportunity to be in. It will serve as motivation for cheerleaders to improve upon their technique,” JV cheerleader Rachel Lyon said. “Although STUNT team will begin during the spring of 2015, other sports for girls are being added.”
During the 2013-14 school year a girls’ lacrosse team was formed under the Title IX requirements as well.

Lyon said,“By adding the STUNT team, I think girls will want to get involved.The rising opportunities for girls is a good thing.”