Lausanne (Switzerland), Oct 29 (IANS) Having made its debut in the World Games this August in Chengdu, China, cheerleading, as a sport, is seeking to be part of the Olympic Games family, Jeff Webb, President of the International Cheer Union (ICU), has said.

The ICU is here for the three-day International Federations (IFs) Forum at the Olympic Museum, organised by SportAccord, which gathers the International Olympic Committee (IOC), IFs, and forum partners to talk about the future of sports on Tuesday.

“We’ve attended the forum for 10 years. About 70 sports are allowed in the forum, which has attendees who are already in the Games. They are the crown jewels. Some of which are already recognized by the IOC, and some are trying to get recognition. So this is the time when all the parts come together to find topics that interest everybody,” Webb said.

The ICU, founded in 2004, was recognised by the IOC as the world governing body of cheerleading in 2021. It comprises 121 national federations and represents over 10 million athletes worldwide, reports Xinhua.

A mixed Pom Doubles competition was held for the first time at the 2025 Chengdu World Games, where the United States won the gold medals.

“We were recognised fully in 2021. The World Games are now a part of our portfolio. We’re continuing to press. This is a story very strong for us,” said Karl Olson, ICU’s Secretary General.

Webb said, “We’re trying to have our participation here, trying to be a part of this as well. The World Games is a start, and the ultimate (goal), obviously, is to be in the Olympic Games.”

For many sports fans, cheerleading is more like an entertaining part of a game. But actually, cheerleading combines elements of gymnastics, acrobatics, and dance. It was originally tasked to cheer the teams and entertain the audience, but today, cheerleading is practised as an independent competitive sport.

Cheerleading competitions have strict sets of rules and criteria for teams and performances. A panel of judges gives their scores based on the difficulty and execution of the teams.

“We say it’s more than a sport,” Webb said. “The heritage is from the sideline at a game, getting the crowd organised and involved. We kept sending coaches and instructors around the world to help them start. Within ten years, we’ll be big enough to start our federation.”

The 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games added baseball/softball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse, and squash as new disciplines.

“We’re not really recognised by LA28 when they made their decisions. We’re hoping for Brisbane 2032. We’re working with them. They want a discussion about how to have a sport that appeals to the youth. Is it entertaining? Is it telegenic? Does it get great TV range?” Webb said.

“We want to make sure we’re doing it seriously. We educate people that we are athletic,” he added.

–IANS

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