by PRNewswire

Memphis, Tenn., June 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Cheerleading has helped drive excitement on America's sidelines since the 1880s. As cheerleading grows in popularity and routines evolve, Varsity Spirit, the nation's leading cheer organization is working to ensure that cheerleading safety rules and training advance with the activity.

As one of the earliest proponents of cheer safety regulations, Varsity Spirit continues to work closely with cheerleading safety organizations such as the American Association of Cheerleading Coaches and Administrators (AACCA) and the United States All Star Federation to advance safety measures to help protect cheerleaders from injury.

A new study released by the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research at the University of North Carolina recognizes this increased emphasis on cheerleading safety. The study acknowledges safety developments such as Varsity's alliance with the National Collegiate Athletic Association to enhance cheerleading safety at NCAA institutions by creating the College Cheerleading Safety Initiative.

In fact, the NCAA's insurance company has not had a single catastrophic injury claim since the NCAA started requiring coaches to get safety training three years ago.

"We agree with the findings of the study that even one injured cheerleader is one too many," said Jeff Webb, founder and CEO of Varsity Spirit. "That's why Varsity remains dedicated to cheerleading safety. This is personal to us. Our children are cheerleaders, our neighbors' children are cheerleaders, we were cheerleaders. It's our mission to help keep cheerleaders safe when they practice and perform their routines."

This summer, more than 350,000 cheerleaders and their coaches will receive safety instruction at thousands of cheerleading camps conducted by Varsity Spirit. This year Varsity has expanded its widely recognized Safety Awareness Program from the college cheer camps to all of its camps. Varsity hopes the cheerleaders and their coaches will take the lessons learned back to their gyms, schools, and parents.

In calculating the risk of injury of high school athletes, the UNC study finds that sports such as, gymnastics, football and ice hockey have a higher risk of injury per 100,000 participants than cheerleading, which contradicts recent reporting about the safety of cheerleading.

"These findings mean that the cheerleading community including training organizations, schools, coaches and the athletes themselves remain committed to cheerleading safety," said Jim Lord, executive director of the AACCA. "We can never relax our standards. We cannot let up on our safety initiatives to train coaches, cheerleaders and administrators."

Three years ago, Varsity joined the National Federation of High School Associations to help develop their Spirit Education Program which provides a framework for safe practices in cheerleading programs at the 18,000 high schools across America.

Varsity.com provides extensive safety resources for cheerleaders, parents, administrators and coaches at www.varsity.com/library/safety.aspx. Among those resources is the Parent's Guide to Cheerleading Safety, which provides tools to help parents assess the safety of their children's cheer programs. It helps them ask the right questions and recognize when there's a problem that needs to be addressed.

In addition to Varsity's work to establish the first safety regulations in the 1980s, Varsity has been at the helm of a large number of safety programs in recent years, and that work is paying off.

According to a National Electronic Injury Surveillance System survey by the Consumer Products Safety Commission, emergency room visits among cheerleaders, which had been increasing every year, have leveled off in the last five years and declined in some years.

"We will continue to use our influence in the cheerleading community to emphasize the importance of safe cheerleading," Webb said. "We are committed to this goal."

For more information about Varsity's safety programs, visit www.varsity.com.

About Varsity

Varsity is the source for all things related to cheerleading and dance team. With rich heritage and traditions dating back to 1948, Varsity is an innovative global leader comprised of the leading spirit industry brands and organizations including its educational camps, clinics, competitions and uniforms to teams around the world. Varsity is based in Memphis, Tenn. and employs more than 3,000 employees nationwide. For more information about Varsity, please visit www.varsity.com.

SOURCE Varsity Spirit

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