April 2, 2007 — -- As high school and college cheerleaders face increased pressure to perform gravity-defying leaps and flips, they are becoming vulnerable to permanent injury -- even death.

Cheerleading showed 1.05 injuries per 1,000 athletic exposures, nearly half the average sports rate of 2.03 per 1,000 AE and lower than eight other girls’ sports.

Cheerleading has developed into a very disciplined and competitive sport. It incorporates much of the athletic demands of gymnastics but without mats. There has been a significant rise in injuries ...

CHICAGO (AP) -- Cheerleading isn't just jumping and waving pompoms — it has become as athletic and potentially as dangerous as a sport and should be designated one to improve safety, the nation's ...

High school cheer teams nationwide are reporting fewer lower-body injuries after adopting performance-supportive footwear. Athletic training records and budgets now show a trend toward cheer-specific ...

HOUSTON — Sophia Neylon, 21, has been in competitive cheer and acrobatics since the first grade and had been relatively injury-free until a tumbling run at the end of high school. “I landed a little ...

High school athletics and the injuries associated with each sport. Nov. 13, 2008— -- With the school year well under way, and Thanksgiving on the horizon, many fall athletes are winding down ...

HUTCHINSON, Kan. (KWCH/Gray News) - A high school cheerleader is at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, after suffering head and spinal injuries at practice. The reported accident ...

Injury rate comparisons also tell a compelling story. Based on surveillance data from High School RIO (Reporting Information Online)—a national system that tracks injuries via certified athletic ...