Cheerleading Factoid of the Day

battleaxe (69)modFormer Cheerleaderin Sportsball • 4 years ago (edited)

The Cheerleading reality shows out now are highlighting the savage side of cut throat competition, serious injuries and how it's become on par with gymnastics on the level of training and non stop traveling for some. More males with strength and agility are getting into the sport which started as all male anyhow so I suppose things go full circle.

Here is a Cheerleader Factoid of the Day of a stand out moment in the sport.

In 1968 during the height of the Civil Rights movement, two Yale Cheerleaders stood their ground as an homage of what occured at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City. Their names were Greg Parker and Bill Brown. A couple weeks prior on the international stage two Olympians did a medal stand demonstration.

(pinterest/longreads)

There was also a wave of other Cheerleaders refusing to do 'tricks' to the Confederate Flag or "Dixie Songs". Seeing Ivy League athletes take it to civil/human rights level or political shows one the power of a field surrounded by a rather captive audience.

The back story is that two weeks before this historical pic, Tommie Smith and John Carlos stood united like this at the 1968 Olympics and these two followed suit. It's an iconic photograph that captures that not all cheerleaders are compliant blondes, quite the opposite in more than a few cases. ;)

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