Ok, me and my friend were having a friendly debate tonight and I was curious about getting some outside opinions on the subject....

Which is more of a sport, cheerleading or partnership dancing?

I'm not definately not talking down cheerleading I just feel that dancing is more physically and mentally demanding than cheerleading. What does everyone else think?
~LB

You Haven't Truly Made It Until Your Head Is On A Pez Dispenser

I think both are equally a sport, cheerleading (to be blunt) would be more of a solo-but-still-in-sync-with-the-rest-of-the-team-thing and partnerdancing more of a team-but-still-trying-to-show-individuality-thing. Both are very very hard to do and I admire those who can pull it off

"Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero." - Horace

Well,

Having done both, I can tell you that this is a very tough argument. But I believe that they are both a very challenging and unique sport in their own right. Both cheerleading and ballroom dance have a set of rules and regulations, in both you are able to compete against other "teams." Both require countless hours of training and dedication.

For someone to say that one is more of a sport without every doing the other, it is natural for them to choose the one that they are doing, as they do not have the knowledge or experience to make an accurate judgment of the other.

I'm sure that most everyone who posts on this site would have no argument that ballroom dance is a focused sport. Challenging, physically demanding etc. etc. But for those who have never done cheerleading, I can tell you that between the stunts, flips, Jumps, HOURS upon HOURS spent to be sure every move you make is in synch with the rest of the team, even working out the sound of your voice to match your teammates pitch Yes, even hours spent on technique..It is also a VERY mentally and physically demanding sport.

My personal opinion is that this is a draw. One could argue either side endlessly because there is so much that goes into being a dancer or being a cheerleader. In my opinion, it is like arguing the sport merit of football vs. basketball. they are both sports right? And how could anyone possibly argue otherwise?

Tootles!

Chiq.

I believe it is on the cards that the IDSF that is the Amatuer Body intend to embrace Cheerleading. And Rock and Roll. They are heading in your direction also.

As with all the sports I can think of, the better you become at them, the more physical and mentally demanding they become. So your question boils down to, at what level? One quick example: Go to a public park and watch someone playing social tennis, then go watch a professional tennis match. There isn't much similarity, but they are both playing something called by the same name.

For the younger set, cheerleading would have to be considered more of a sport because it gets sanctioned by high school associations and is supported by booster clubs and fund-raisers and such. That is a different way of looking at it, but it addresses the public perception, I guess. But ballroom dancing may someday be embraced as an Olympic event and its DanceSport competitions are already world-renowned. They both take a lot of time and effort, with cheerleading probably being a little tougher on the participants' knees and backs.
From a man's standpoint, they are so different, that the argument, while interesting, is akin to a couple of guys arguing whether poker or golf is more of a sport because both include lots of wagering and both are on TV a lot.

This subject is popular, but I'm not sure the debate really gets us anywhere. Those of us who dance competitively know how physically demanding it is (we need not "defend" it). As far as the Olympics go, if they can have figure skating, they could have dancing...it would just be difficult to coordinate an unbiased panel of qualified judges. By the way, I don't consider figure skating a perfect candidate for an olympic event either, but it is very popular.

guest. I could be wrong but i don't think so. In Figure Skating as in Pair or Ice Dancing to represent your country you would both be American or Russian. In dancing especially among the top dancers it would be hard to find a pair from the same country. You could go down the list and eventually find a pair. But then would they be the best. Ice Skating and the Olympics go back right to the beginning of the modern era. Long before most of us were born. They changed the rules a bit just recently. A vocal can only accompany the orchestration now. No longer can Michael Crawford's Phantom of the Opera be skated to. Which I think is a great pity.

I think both could be considered sports. Cheer leading now is primarily group gymnastics. Both take significant physical skill and energy. dancing with skates on has been considered a sport for a long time and individual gymnastics has been a sport for a long time.