Cheerleading Is Extremely Dangerous

There's a small but determined faction of fans who refuse to concede that certain "activities" are sports. Golf is a favorite, presumably because it doesn't involve much in the way of physical activity, and a typical round can involve a pony keg and a pack of Reds.

Cheerleading is another example. Perhaps the zealots have an argument here since there aren't typically winners and losers, just a group of people in fancy polyester get-ups who clap, dance and chant for another group of people who are actually competing.

Whatever, I am much more liberal in my "what's a sport and what isn't" views, and I'll happily include just about anything: golf, cheerleading, poker, horseshoes ... you get the point. But no matter what you call it -- a sport, a hobby, something the guys who couldn't make the JV basketball team do -- cheerleading is extremely dangerous.

In fact, for the purposes of this discussion, it's the most dangerous "sport" in colleges and high schools, according to LiveScience.com.

... [C]heerleading continues to cause more serious and deadly injuries by far than other sports.

Researchers have long known how dangerous cheerleading is, but records were poorly kept until recently. An update to the record-keeping system last year found that between 1982 and 2007, there were 103 fatal, disabling or serious injuries recorded among female high school athletes, with the vast majority (67) occurring in cheerleading. The next most dangerous sports: gymnastics (nine such injuries) and track (seven).

That's shocking, frankly, although I suppose it makes sense: bad things are bound to happen when you launch someone 20 feet in the air without a safety net, no matter how much training you may (or may not) have.

Related: three years ago, LiveScience.com cited a U.S. Consumer Produce Safety Commission study that listed the most dangerous sports in the America, and cheerleading wasn't among the top 15 (maybe the folks at commission didn't think it qualified). And football was ranked third behind basketball (really?) and bicycling.

The commission study looked at emergency room visits (the UNC study focused on fatalities), and that could skew the results. There's also the issue of more people playing basketball, or riding bikes, than playing football, which would mean more injuries. Just to be safe, though, steer your kids towards chess.

Latest Cheerleaders Images

Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis (6th L) and AirAsia Group Chief Executive Tony Fernandes (5th L) poses with other AsiaAsia officials and the Raiderettes cheerleaders, in front of the newly unveiled AirAsia-Oakland Raiders aircraft at the International Airport's low cost carrier terminal in Sepang on June 26, 2009. The Oakland Raiders announced an unprecedented sponsorship with AirAsia, a leading low-fare airline in Asia. AFP PHOTO / Saeed KHAN (Photo credit should read SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images)

AFP/Getty Images

Cheerleaders dance before the German basketball championship final between Baskets Oldenburg and Telekom Baskets Bonn in Bonn June 23, 2009. REUTERS/Ina Fassbender (GERMANY SPORT BASKETBALL SOCIETY IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Reuters

Cheerleaders dance before the German basketball championship final between Baskets Oldenburg and Telekom Baskets Bonn in Bonn June 23, 2009. REUTERS/Ina Fassbender (GERMANY SPORT BASKETBALL SOCIETY)

Reuters

ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 14: A Orlando Magic dancer performs against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game Five of the 2009 NBA Finals at Amway Arena on June 14, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Credit: 2009 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

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ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 14: A cheerleader is lowered from the rafters during pregame festivities during Game Five of the 2009 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Orlando Magic at Amway Arena on June 14, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Credit: 2009 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

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New York Jets cheerleaders greet some of the hundreds of New Jersey National Guard soldiers waiting to march in a parade through downtown Trenton, N.J., Friday, June 12, 2009, to honor their return from Iraq. The mobilization last year of roughly 2, 900 soldiers- roughly half of the state's entire guard unit-marked the largest deployment of New Jersey National Guard troops to a combat zone since World War II. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

A cheerleader performs during the women's basketball European Championship qualifying round game between Slovakia and Poland in Riga June 11, 2009. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins (LATVIA SPORT BASKETBALL)

Reuters

ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 09: An Orlando Magic dancer performs during a break in the fourth quarter in Game Three of the 2009 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers on June 9, 2009 at Amway Arena in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Getty Images

ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 9: Cheerleaders for the Orlando Magic repell down from the rafters prior to Game Three of the 2009 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers at Amway Arena on June 9, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Credit: 2009 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

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Cheerleaders from the Los Angeles Lakers team dance during game two of the NBA finals against the Orlando Magic at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on June 7, 2009. The Lakers won 101-96 and now lead the series 2-0. AFP PHOTO / Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

AFP/Getty Images