FEATURE: Guernsey's Unknown Sporting Talent

Monday, 31 July 2023 17:40

A cheerleading coach in Guernsey says local athletes deserve more recognition as they build an impressive trophy case.

Michaela Street's Rebellion Allstars recently returned from the international Summer Jam Competition with multiple trophies.

She says she wants the public to be aware of the boys and girl's victories over the past 8 years:

"In total, they've brought back 30 trophies, so they've been doing really well showing that Guernsey cheerleaders are a force to be reckoned with.

Talent in the UK is growing phenomenally so the fact that our Guernsey girls and boys are still winning is amazing."

Following the success this summer, the team has received a bid for the Battle of The Champions, which takes place in Nottingham's Motorpoint Arena next year.

The winners of this annual, national competition are named Royal Champions.

Michaela says getting to this point is an outstanding achievement:

"I would say this is a massive deal.

You have to win a bid, it’s not like you could just book yourself onto go. In order to win that bid you have to put in the work and make sure your routine is hitting the scoresheet and beats the rest of the competition."

Rebellion Allstars performing at the International Summer Jam Competition

She says people are generally unaware of what cheerleaders do, outside of the American stereotype:

"People either see us as another gymnastics club or they think that cheerleading is all about pom-poms and just dancing or cheering on a team. It’s a lot more athletic than that. You have to work on your own skill set and teamwork."

She says cheerleading has a lot of benefits:

"Physical fitness is a key element of it, you build up your stamina - cheerleading is one of the only sports where you use every single muscle group. You need a good strong core, your legs for tumbling, and your arms for lifting.

There’s also the teamwork element. It’s just great to see people growing their social skills. Super shy athletes become so confident and can start up a conversation with anyone.

And from a mental health perspective, you get super close to the team - they become a second family.

There are also time management benefits, they all learn how to manage school work as well as cheer."