Connecticut College Not Allowed to Replace Women’s Volleyball with Cheerleading

[The Straight Story]

Connecticut College Not Allowed to Replace Women’s Volleyball with Cheerleading


Quinnipiac University in Connecticut tried to get rid of women’s volleyball and replace it with competitive cheerleading. The move prompted a lawsuit from female students on the volleyball team, who successfully argued in federal court that the university violated Title IX, the federal law requiring gender equality in federally-funded educational programs, including athletics. Quinnipiac also eliminated men’s outdoor track and golf.

The plaintiffs also argued that the school violated Title IX by inflating its roster numbers for female varsity athletes and counting female cross-country runners multiple times for their required participation on indoor and outdoor track teams.

In ruling against competitive cheerleading, U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill noted that the sport is not recognized by the NCAA and that during its season the Quinnipiac team competed in events in which at least six different scoring systems were used. He concluded that competitive cheer was not yet sufficiently developed to qualify for Title IX consideration.

http://www.allgov.com/Unusual_News/ViewNews/Connecticut_College_Not_Allowed_to_Replace_Womens_Volleyball_with_Cheerleading_100723

[msongs]

1. how bout replacing it with competetive ballet, opera, or shopping? hmmm nt

[napi21]

2. I agree with the ruling. If you've ever played in a cpmpetative sport

you already know that cheerliding, albeit difficult, doesn't hold a candle to a real sports ability!

[Orsino]

4. It's real athleticism.

The distinction you're trying to make, I think, is between sports that are refereed, and those that are judged. Neither is inherently more athletic or competitive.

[napi21]

6. Maybe, but I sure haven't ever hear of, nor expect to hear of

a Shaqor Kobe doing cheer leading. I realize it's athletic and requires concentration, diciplin, and dedication, but it's simply not a sport. You can have judging at individual campaigns but there is no divisional scoring There's simply no competition like that.

Gotta love em, because ALL cheer leaders are Beautiful, and that's a requirement of that endeavor, and I sure have seen a lot of nasty looking basketball & football players in my time!

[MAcciard]

9. Then why...

Then why is Gymnastics a sport? Why is curling an olympic sport? How about tennis, or golf? All of those are school sports, except for curling of course.

[Orsino]

10. The missing factor is money.

Put the same money into cheerleading or gymnastics, and you will have your Shaqs and Kobes. And eventually your Roses and OJs.

[MAcciard]

12. Did you know that...

competitive cheerleading is a multi- billion dollar a year business? Companies like Varsity brands, and Jam brands, have revenues in the tens of millions per year?

12 years ago there were two colleges in the country offering scholarships for competitive cheerleading, this year there were over 85. Some offering full ride scholarships for outstanding cheerleaders. It encompasses far more athleticism than golf, or even baseball to a certain degree.

Yet those are considered sports.

[MAcciard]

5. Really? Is that so?

I am sorry to have to begin my tenure here on DU, by correcting the misconceptions of two posters who have no idea what "competitive cheerleading" is, or what it entails.

My two daughters cheer for their high school team, which is 10 time state champions, and 3 time back to back New England regional champions.

They also cheer All star, which is competitive cheerleading. They practice 2-3 hours a day 5 days per week. They are away every other weekend competing Jan.- Mar. They do this every week for 7 months to perfect a three minute performance. There is no half time. no mulligans, no do overs. They leave it all on the mat, in three minutes. They run daily, they lift other athletes, throwing them 18 feet in the air. They are better conditioned than any other athlete.

Cheerleading is definitely a sport. 64% of all sports injuries occur in competitive cheerleading.

They tumble the same as gymnast do. They dance the same as dance teams do, They yell like the sideline cheerleaders of old, and in between all of that they toss other athletes, they lift them with precise timing, and execution, they twirl, spin, throw, catch, rotate, and tumble other athletes.

So when commenting on the athletic ability that it takes to do something perhaps you should possess a modicum of knowledge about the skills required before pontificating.

[11 Bravo]

8. Welcome to DU! I don't know enough about competitive cheerleading to have an informed opinion ...

but your knowledge and obvious passion are compelling.

:hi:

:toast:

[CBR]

11. I agree with you.

Those women and men who are cheerleaders are definitely athletes. I played D2 soccer and spent many early mornings in the training room getting treatments -- there were always cheerleaders in there.

I do not get the need to say it is not a sport. I love watching the teams compete on TV.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Here's an earlier thread on that :^)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8795885

[HockeyMom]

7. My daughter played college ice hockey

D3, not club. Do I consider cheerleading a sport? Hell, no. UConn has a very good D1 ice hockey team. Yet, they want CHEERLEADING? Gimme a break.

[cloudbase]

13. I agree that they're athletes.

It's an activity, not a sport. Hell, I'm a glider pilot, and many of my fellow pilots refer to it as a sport, even when they race each other. It's not.

[RagAss]

14. They can thank Richard Nixon....how odd....did I just say that?