Cheerleader and Cheerleading. These two words invoke many different thoughts for people. Some of these thoughts are good, and some are bad, but one thing is for sure: you can’t have spirit without cheerleading.

One’s ideas about cheerleading depend a lot on one’s exposure to the sport. One person who knows a lot about cheer is Mrs. Shelia Saunders. She’s been a cheerleading coach for more than fifteen years, six at the high school level. ‘’Being a cheer coach is a lot of work, and you have to be flexible,’’ says Mrs. Saunders, who notes that it is very hard controlling a team of 20-30 girls.

According to the United States Sports Academy, “Cheerleading is the number one female sport and number two in catastrophic injuries when compared to all sports.” In fact, in the U.S., “only football is ranked higher.” The danger of the sport is not lost on Coach Saunders, who has had to deal with her share of injuries. “Although safety is my first priority, I have, in my 10 years as a coach, dealt with sprains, pulled muscles and minor concussions,” says Coach Saunders. “I don’t really like to think about how to deal with injuries but rather how to prevent them. You have to teach the athletes to take stunting and tumbling very seriously, and sometimes that doesn’t happen. It’s also very important to teach proper technique and proper progression, which some coaches don’t do. I have seen more serious injuries in all-star cheerleading where the level of difficulty is much higher than in Montgomery County high school cheer. The county is one of the more strict counties and has several rules in place for added safety.’’

Mrs. Saunders is a lover of cheer and notes her daughters actually got her into cheer “My daughters started cheering when they were young, and I wanted to make sure they were safe so I learned everything I could. After about a year, I fell in love with the sport,” she says.

As for the rigors of coaching and how she goes about teaching and practicing the sport. Coach Saunders love making up these great routines but admits “its trial and error”. I know what I liked seeing from the previous season and think of how I can make it more exciting. I like fast paced routines with things going on at all times.’’

Also, she notes that to get these girls into perfect shape they have to practice for two hours four-five times a week.
Even though she loves cheer very much, she does have other interests, which include “church, spending time with my family, music, watching basketball and football.’’
She has a very supportive family and says, “Both of my daughters cheer as do most of the girls in my family, so they are okay with it.’’

Mrs. Saunders loves the sport and coaching the sport that’s why she makes Paint Branch High School cheerleaders look so great