Cheerleading Champions, Intensity of the Sport- Erika Kurre

You saw tonight a whole new season of skill and talent in So You Think You Can Dance.

Did you know one of the leading cheer squads in the world is based right here in middle Tennessee?

It takes years of practice to reach the top level and the training and injuries these athletes endure are more intense than most other sports!

These athletes are some of the best in the worldin cheerleading.

With trophies and first-place banners to their name, these girls are traveling the country and conquering world competitions.

Cheerleader Brittany Head says, "It's my life. I couldn't live without it."

Head has been cheering for eleven years.

Now in her teens, she's like many girls who enter the sport as early as 3 years old.

Premier Athletics Manager Jay Noffsinger says, "The skills that these kids have now, you have to start young. And they practice everywhere from 5-10 hours a week."

About 185 All-Stars-- of all ages-- practice at this gym to travel and compete.

But their success doesn't come without a price.

Cheerleader Hayley Stevens says, "I have a condition in my heels, disease in my knees, stress fractures in my back-- I have four of those."

The 14-year old is also living with scoliosis and torn ligaments in her ankles-- twice.

Theyre injuries caused by performing stunts that can often lead to even worse injuries-- sometimes fatal.

Experts say high school cheerleading accounts for 65% of all catastrophic injuries to female athletes.

Its a sport that goes unregulated and doesn't get the credit it deserves for it's intensity.

Stevens says, "Theres many things that can happen. You can fall in tumbling or you can even land-- just land the wrong way. Stunting-- they can drop you. It's a very contact sport."

Just last year, the number of emergency room visits by children with cheerleading injuries jumped 110%.

Thats why at gyms like Premier Athletics in Franklin, the focus during practice is on safety.

There are thousands of these springs underneath the floor that these cheerleaders practice on.

But it doesn't cut down on the intensity of the sport.

To lessen the cases of injuries, gyms like Premier Athletics-- which specialize in cheerleading-- don't teach dancers the skills their bodies aren't ready for.

Noffsinger says, "Its progression. They start from the basics and proceed to high level skills when they're ready."

More and more teams are turning to these gyms for safety techniques.

They're methods that weren't so common even 2 years ago.

Stevens says, "My back is mainly just wear and tear. And I had a lot of times when I was younger and they'll just drop me completely to the floor on my stunting and then a couple of times it's tumbling-- impacting."

But to Hayley, the injuries from her past are worth it, as is the time she spends practicing.

Last season, her squad placed 8th in a world competition and the girls she cheers with are like family.

Growing up together, they've built friendships, team values and their families have spent hundreds and thousands of dollars for them to do it.

Cheer mom Tracie Nichols says, "We take it very seriously. It's our girls sport, it's our hobby, we spend a lot of money, spend a lot of time and they love it. They love to win."

They love it so much, even the hazards of this sport won't stop them.

And these girls don't plan to ever grow out of it.

Stevens shakes her head, "never."

Cheerleader Brittany Head says, "Cuz it's my life and I just couldn't live without it. I just need to keep going as long as possible."

For many cheerleaders, the years of hard work pay off with full scholarships to college.

To make the sport safer, the National Cheer Safety Foundation started an injury prevention campaign to report the injuries.

They also are encouraging officials to formally classify cheerleading as a sport which would boost safety regulations.

You can help by clicking on the Fox Links tab to the left and look for "Report Cheer Injuries."Cheerleading Champions, Intensity of the Sport- Erika Kurre