Safety precautions require safety certification and ongoing education for coaches. I know this all too well, because cheerleading isn’t considered a sport, cheerleading teams get last priority to practice space at schools. Cheerleading teams have to practice early in the morning on weekends for long hours if they want to get gym space. Other than that, during the week after school cheerleaders usually practice in hallways, outside, or on the gym floor. None of which meets safety standards for cheerleading practice. I fell on my head while doing a back flip on the gym floor, hit my head, and got a concussion. If we had mats, this wouldn’t have happened. The athleticism required for cheerleaders today is a lot more than it was many years ago. Cheerleading would be referred to as a sport simply because it involves physically and mentally straining activities, similar to many other sports. It takes hard work and dedication to be a cheerleader. Cheerleaders spend endless hours in the gym working hard on their routines to perform a perfect two and a half minute