Did you know that?
Cheerleading recognized as a sport by the International Olympic Committee. Cheering is also a sport. This was decided by the International Olympic Committee recognizing Cheerleading the status of sport for a three-year trial period. And so, among a few have, at the Olympics we could admire the virtuosity of young girls and boys armed with pom poms, in choreography halfway between dance and gymnastics. The cheerleaders, in the collective imagination, are the high school students who cheer for the football team of the teen drama on TV. But in addition to Beverly Hills 90210, cheerleading is not just a status symbol of American adolescence but an activity practiced by girls and boys (yes, even boys!), Complete with competitions and national federations. To be exact, the International Cheerleading Union has 100 national federations and 4.5 million registered athletes. In addition to cheerleading, the International Olympic Committee has also declared Muay Thai a sport, a Thai fighting discipline that has several points in common with boxing. Both sports will benefit from Committee funding of $ 25,000 a year over a three-year period. With this decision, the sports recognized by the Olympic Committee rise to 37 but it does not mean that in Tokyo 2021 we will see cheer leader and thai boxer. The process to become an Olympic discipline is long, even if it cannot be ruled out that Tokyo will decide independently to include these two sports among the exceptional participants in the next edition of the Games.
