CELEB POWER

When Rebecca got in touch with US cheer team Action Cheer, the opportunity arose for Cheer Season

Two star Jeron Hazelwood to fly in from Texas to train the young students of Bay Twisters. He was tasked with choreographing a competitive routine for 99 girls at Tui Ridge in Rotorua earlier this year.

Asked how our Kiwi cheer world differs from the all-American version, Jeron answers it’s not that much different.

“There are a lot of different rules and regulations around safety and that kind of thing, but all in all it’s not that much different,” says Jeron. “It would be good to see some more boys involved, but we have that problem in the States too!”

Jeron says the key aspects he loves about the sport aren’t just physical.

“Although I love being the show pony as much as anyone else, the best thing about cheer is that it teaches you not only physical strength but mental strength as well.

“Over in America, we don’t really care for crybabies,” he laughs. “It can be a bit of an eye-opener for some people.”

Rebecca insists Bay Twisters is not quite working to the same extremes as Cheer in terms of pushing the envelope.

“We haven’t had any serious injuries!”

Cheerleading has finally been recognised as an Olympic sport globally, but Rebecca says, in New Zealand, it still has a long way to go when it comes to recognising cheer for what it really is.

“To be officially recognised as a sport at the Olympics, after so many years, that was an amazing feeling,” she says. “People still think it's all about pom poms and short skirts at rugby games, and it does my head in. When people say it’s not a real sport, I say I'd like to see them go out on the floor for two-and-a-half minutes and do the routine that these kids do. We're slowly getting there, though.”

BAYTWISTERS.CO.NZ