There have been times where cheer caused me some of the worst pain in my life, mentally and physically. There have been times where the best moments of my life happened because of cheerleading. I didn’t come from some big allstar gym, I never did gymnastics, and I didn’t seriously start cheer until I was a freshman in high school. I did high school cheer and I feel in love with it and that’s what sky rocketed my dreams of becoming one of the best cheerleaders in the world. Sounds silly right? I had loved the sport so much that I was willing to do whatever it took to be the very best one day. Never in a million years did I think that I would face all the hardships along the way.
They always say you are a product of your own environment. In order to be the best I had to surround myself with the best, which is why I moved to Memphis in 2013. Over half the team had previously been on USA Cheer, and came from some of the best college cheerleading teams in the country. I knew I was in the right spot. My first year on Memphis was a learning year for me. This was the first year I learned how to elite stunt, basket, and tumble. I was an alternate that year…and after accepting that I was new and understanding that I had some work to put in…I had become the hardest working alternate there ever was. I was determined to be just as good or even better than my teammates. It took me countless hours in the gym, I was the first one there, and the last one out…and I can’t even tell you how many standing fulls I trained on the side. That year, the University of Memphis won college nationals. Although I was not on the floor, it was one of the best times of my life. I had learned so much through observation and so much from working on the side, that I felt like I was finally understanding what it took to be the absolute best. Our coach would preach CCP. Confidence, Composure, Performance. Something I would carry with me for the rest of my life. Through all that I learned, I decided to try out for USA Coed Cheer that year. THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF ANY ELITE CHEERLEADER. It was the most challenging, most exhilarating, most intimidating, yet most exciting thing I had ever experienced. Needless to say I didn’t make it my first year. After experiencing some natural sadness, I picked myself up and said “I didn’t come all this way for nothing”. The next year of my life I dedicated to training for the following USA tryouts. For the next three years I had found myself a member of USA Coed National Cheerleading team.
The feeling of wearing your country's letters across your chest, while representing the sport you love. There is no better feeling. Knowing that you have achieved the highest level there is in your sport, it is almost addicting. However, something that honorable never comes easy. In 2014, I made the team and was an alternate. In 2015, I was on the floor and that was the first year we had ever lost. In 2016, I made the team again and I was an alternate. In 2017, I didn’t make the team. I am telling you this for several reasons. As a member of USA Coed, I have been in every possible position a teammate could be in, at the highest level of cheer there is. I have been on the side, where I had to put all my personal feelings aside and support my teammates so they could best represent our country and sport. I have been on the side doing every single thing in the routine, so my teammates and coaches knew they could depend on me for any and everything. I have been on the floor, representing my country where mistakes were made. I have been at home, sad and in my feelings, knowing I didn’t make the team after being a part of the program for three years. I have experienced self-doubt, and questioned so many things about why I was in the positions I was in. However one thing I never questioned was my passion. I am a true believer that everything happens for a reason and if you want something bad enough you will fight until you can’t fight anymore. Feelings aside, I knew I had to work harder. My perseverance was stronger than any negative feeling I had felt and I knew I wasn’t done.
In 2017, after I got over myself (lol), one of my USA teammates from the previous year began to visit Memphis. He called me up and asked me to play stunt while he was in town. Little did I know, this would turn into us trying out for USA together. We trained month after month, and slowly but surely we ended up doing things I had never done in my cheer career. Finally, I had a partner that was committed with me, someone I felt like had my back and I could do anything with. Not to mention, I physically was in the best shape of my life, my mindset was in a good place, and everything just felt…right. My fifth and final tryout, I had made the team. I had come back stronger than ever, I was the most confident I had ever been, and after all that I had been through…in that moment I knew that this year was going to be my year. In April of 2018 I competed on the floor with USA Coed. For the first time I was in every part of the routine, my family was able to come watch, and I had won a gold medal. In this moment, I knew that for every time I was an alternate, for every time I didn’t make a team, for every time I felt like I wasn’t good enough, for every time I was busting my butt to be the very best I could be, for every time I didn’t give up…..it was all for this moment. I have had the honor and the privilege of representing my country in the sport that I love and I think god that it wasn’t easy. This process has taught me humility, perseverance, mental strength, how to be the best teammate possible. It has given me confidence, the ability to know that through life there is nothing I won’t work hard enough for, and above all built up my character.
To some people it is just cheerleading, but to me it is life changing. Being the best at something comes from something within. Something you must have inside of you…a will and desire. I always had it in my, but the experiences I had with cheer brought it out. Winning a gold medal is an indescribable feeling, yet coming into your own, finally being the person I have always wanted to be….feeling invincible…..that is priceless.
