Innovations in Cheerleading

Cheerleading found innovations in the form of gymnastics and tumbling routines. This called for sheer athletic talents for cheerleaders. Cheerleading was evolving into a sport from a mere pastime. Cheerleaders were becoming more daring as was evident from the formation of breath-taking human pyramids and wonderful tumbling routines.

Cheerleading began as an all-male activity. Women started taking part in early 1920s, but their number was very small and role quite minor.

Little did the few girl cheerleaders know when the second world war started in the 1940s that the war would turn the tables for them. As the brave men went to fight the war, women took their places on the sidelines to cheer. More and more women enrolled for cheerleading, and their enthusiasm and spirit knew no limit. Slowly but surely, gradually but glamorously, cheerleading was turning into a mostly-women activity - a makeover that is today irreversible.

Men who went to war did indeed return; but the girl cheerleaders were not ready to leave the sidelines. By now, they had an inseparable bond with this activity and they had done amazingly well too! So what else would they do than make it more womanly by introducing dance and aerobic routines! There came several dance teams across America!

Lawrence Herkimer of Dallas is regarded as the founder of the spirit industry, and organized the first cheerleading camp in 1948 at Sam Houston College in Huntsville. Although the camp started with as few as 52 girls, it grew in attendance year after year and reached tens of thousands of participants in a few years. In this, paper pompons were used. Herkimer introduced ribbons, buttons, and cheer slogans (sprit slogans) to pep up the crowd as well as the cheerleaders.

Herkimer founded the National Cheerleading Association (NCA) in 1947 at the Southern Methodist University in Texas to teach cheerleading. Herkimer was the instructor at several cheerleading camps that followed. The "Herkie Cheerleading jump" is named after Herkimer.

The NCA started conducting cheerleading workshops and cheerleading camps in 1949. Summer camps were held for school cheerleaders. Tens of thousands of cheerleaders around the country began receiving basic cheerleading lessons. Cheerleading was rising in popularity and reach.

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