Women's Competitive Cheer Meets
MEET     FORMAT     EVENTS     SCORING

Meet
Teams will compete in the Competitive Cheer Format. This is an incredible and exciting new competition format that features event-based competition in a 1-4 team meet. The format is developed to reflect the athletic and competitive evolution of sideline cheerleading into the sport of competitive stunts and tumbling. The set up and feel of the meet is much like going to any other sporting event. Teams have their own bench areas beside the mat and have similar pre-game warm ups on the actual mat rather than behind the scenes. Athletes compete back and forth in an atmosphere that facilitates the direct comparison between teams. After the first three events, fans can hit the concession stands during the short half-time and then be glued back to their seats by the exciting fast-paced action of the 2nd half Tumbling event and Team Event. Live scoring allows the fans to see difficulty values ahead of time and to see each performances score within minutes. Cummulative event and meet totals are kept updated on the scoreboard throughout the meet. It's a combination of being at a basketball game and a gymnastics meet.


Format
Teams will compete in the event-based format (similar to gymnastics). Each team will compete in 5 events including a team routine. The other four are the Stunt Event, Tumbling Event, Basket Toss Event and the Pyramid Event. The 4 skill events consist of a compulsory portion and an optional portion. Teams are evaluated on the exact same skill in the compulsory portion and are permitted to choose their skills for the optional portion. The optional portion will be valued more than the compulsory portion and will feature more difficult and diverse skills. Each of the skill events will add the compulsory and optional portion scores to compile the total score per event. Then each of the events, including the team routine will be totaled (team routine counting 40% and 4 events total counting 60% or 15% each). The team with the highest total wins the meet. The succesive places will be awarded according to point totals.

Stunt Event
  • 4 rounds, 1 stunt group each team, each round (limited crossing over)30 seconds per round
    • compulsory skill starts time and is first skill (start and ends, 1 foot on floor)
    • remainder of 30 second is used to perform optional portion (ends in a craddle or on floor)
      • optional portion has a required type of skill that must be included (i.e. release, flip, twist, etc.)
  • Round 1: Compulsory- straight up heel stretch 360 cradle. required element in Optional- release skill.
  • Round 2: Compulsory- straight up arabesque 720 cradle. required element in Optional- twisting skill.
  • Round 3: Compulsory- straight up scorpion to scale 360 cradle. required element in Optional- flipping skill.
  • Round 4: Compulsory- Wildcard. Completely optional round.
Basket Toss Event
  • 1 round, 2 basket toss groups each team (no crossovers)
  • Compulsory Portion: back tuck basket
  • Optional Portion: Teams choose their skill.
Pyramid Event
  • 1 round, 20max team members participate.1 minute round
    • compulsory skill starts time and is frist skill (start and ends one foot on floor)
    • remainder of 1 minute is used to perfrom Otional Portion (ends in craddle or on floor)
    Compulsory Portion: 2-2-1/4-2-1 Pyramid
  • Optional Portion: Must include three 2 1/2 high pyramids.
    • ONLY entry, pyramid, dismount and direct or connected transitions are scored.
    • independent stunts and choreography are not scored.
Tumbling Event
  • 3 rounds in the Compulsory Portion, same 8 athletes all 3 rounds, completely synchronized
    • Round 1: standing tuck, turn to side immediately, standing tuck
    • Round 2: standing backhand tuck, turn to side immediately, backhand tuck again.
    • Round 3: round off backhand layout
  • 6 rounds in the Optional Portion, same 12 athletes (may be from compulsory), synchronized optional skills
    • Round 1: duo running tumbling pass (two athletes, same skill, synchronized)
    • Round 2: trio running tumbling pass (three athletes, same skill, synchronized)
    • Round 3: quad running tumbling pass (four athletes, same skill, synchronized)
    • Round 4: SoloA running tumbling pass (must include any Arial skill, i.e. no hands touch surface)
    • Round 5: SoloF running tumbling pass (must include any Front entry skill, arabian is not front entry)
    • Round 6: SoloW running tumbling pass (wildcard pass, no skill requirements)
Team Event
  • Traditional 2 1/2 minute team routine.
  • 36 member max

Scoring
The meet will use a Start Value scoring system or a difficulty value. According to a value system which ranks the difficulty of skills and their combinations, each skill and sequence in the Events will have a specific start value instead of a subjective point range as with traditional scoring systems. This specific start value will then be combined with the execution scores to get the final score for that skill or sequence. The Team Event will continue to use a more traditional scoring system. This new system of scoring limits interpretation as much as possible and more accurately credits skills for their true difficulty compared to other skills. Difficulty is a set value and only execution is the subjective part for the officials. Even execution has a specified standard that limits it's subjectivity.
Prior to the meet, each team will turn in an outline listing their skills in each of the four skill events. According to the skill value grid, an official will assign a start value to all skills and sequences prior to the start of the meet. Teams are only given an execution score from the officials during each event. This execution score is combined with the Start Value to get the score for that skill or round. This is very similar to scoring for gymanstics, figure skating and diving.
In addition to the emphasis on correctly valuing difficulty, officials can focus on pure execution without having to consider other factors or balance themselves in various ranges. Fewer and very specific components compile the execution score which allow officials to be more accurate, consistent and produce the correct results even when only tenths of a point separate teams.