Cheerleading to most people has never been considered a sport. To Vaiola Atuatasi it’s what she dedicates her life to at the moment. Vai is a 12 year old cheerleader who has been cheering since the age of 6, half of her life basically. She’s not a sideline cheerleader who cheers for football teams at games, but a cheerleader who competes against other teams. She spends hours at practice to perfect a 2 minute and 30 second routine that will only be given one chance on stage to win a title. She usually competes against 5 or more teams to win a title. Vai states one thing about competitive cheer is she can always rely on it to be there for her. She says that if there were any problems ever going on outside of cheer she knows she can come to a practice and forget about it all.
Vai says that she wants to continue cheering till her senior year in highschool, so she still has a lot of time, however she does not see herself doing it past that. She’s a flyer and has been one for her whole cheer experience. Being a flyer has made her learn body control at a young age. As a cheerleader you’re constantly in front of a large crowd, she said it’s nerve racking but when you’re with your team on stage together there is no better feeling. It’s almost like an adrenaline rush, she said. Being a cheerleader has taught her many life lessons, one of them being that people will judge you no matter what. So the best thing to do is what you can do. Many young people struggle with trying to be a people pleaser, and be perfect to everyone, but not Vai.
