THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, December 6, 1995 TAG: 9512050115
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY REA FARMER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 80 lines
CHEERLEADING JUST isn't what it used to be.
Once, cheerleading was just a group of energetic young ladies romping along the sidelines shouting encouragement and turning cartwheels. Now, it is a coed effort involving complex stunts and tumbling routines.
Once, cheerleaders merely served a supporting role in a school's athletic picture. Now, they are recognized as athletes in their own right and compete for national titles.
To prepare for a high school or collegiate tryout, girls and boys need specialized training in gymnastics, dance and weightlifting. In the past, individuals needed to travel to various gyms and classes for this instruction.
That has changed in South Hampton Roads.
In October, Old Dominion University cheerleading coach Linda Turner opened Cheer Dynamics, a one-stop training center at ODU. The facility will be open to youngsters 6 years of age through high school.
``We will teach all of the basic skills of cheerleading,'' Turner said. ``This year we're not going to teach gymnastics. We're going to teach little kids the tumbling, but just the basic form.''
Turner performed throughout high school, then fulfilled her goal of becoming Smokey the Dog, the mascot for the University of Tennessee.
After serving as the only female mascot in the country, she went to ODU as cheerleading coach and also worked in the school's sports information office. She quit her sports information job last May to concentrate on her new business.
``When I was little, I had to take dance and I had to take gymnastics and I had to go to the gym and try to lift on my own, which got really expensive, just to be a high school cheerleader,'' Turner said. ``That was before cheerleading got to where it is now. I remember saying when I was in college, `Gosh, there ought to be a school where you can just learn everything.' ''
Turner's school is open to everyone. She has three instructors per class in an effort to give each individual personal attention.
The classes are aimed at preparing individuals for tryouts. At the collegiate level, the sport has acquired a new look. Currently, 112 universities offer some form of cheerleading scholarship. James Madison University and George Mason University, members with ODU in the Colonial Athletic Association, provide tuition assistance to the athletes.
At Cheer Dynamics, Turner's main focus will be safety. She is safety certified by the National Cheerleaders Association. All of her head instructors are also certified. With recent injuries in the sport, more care with practice surfaces, pyramid heights and stunts allowed is being taken. This year, several stunts have been removed from the NCAA rules.
Turner plans to teach her students not only safety rules, but how to put a fellow cheerleader's well-being above one's personal feelings about that individual. She teaches more than stunts and skills. She teaches life lessons.
``A cheerleading squad is a microcosm of society,'' Turner said. ``They have to respect each other. If I'm catching somebody coming down from a two (person)-high pyramid, it's not going to feel good. It's going to hurt. Too bad. If I'm standing on the ground, I'm not going to hurt as much as if that girl hits the ground.''
In addition, Turner has to deal with a whole new set of teen problems. Eating disorders top her list of trouble spots to monitor. With height and weight requirements decreasing for female cheerleaders, disorders such as bulimia and anorexia are coming to the fore.
``I must concentrate on nutrition,'' Turner said. ``Female cheerleaders are getting smaller while most of the population isn't. There are schools that have unbelievable height and weight requirements.''
The most stringent requirement Turner named was the University of Alabama, where cheerleaders are a maximum of 5-foot-3 and 115 pounds.
Most importantly, Turner wants to return cheerleading to the essence of its roots.
``I think the thing that gets lost in the wash is why cheerleading was started,'' she said. ``It was started to support athletic teams and be a fun activity. So many have no fun. I want to make it fun.'' MEMO: For more information about Cheer Dynamics, call 486-8759.
by CNB