number eight Christie omocha southern
Illinois cheerleader Christie omocha
suffered a terrible fall while trying
out a stunt with her team she hit the
floor headfirst from a height of 15 feet
which is about half the length of a
London double-decker bus yah MOCA
suffered a concussion and a broken
vertebra as she was being taken away via
stretcher she still kept an upbeat
demeanour though she was in pain she was
taught to always keep smiling during
performances even if things went wrong
fortunately after going through painful
physical therapy jamocha slowly began to
make a recovery she hoped of returning
to her beloved sport as soon as she was
healthy enough
omocha was aware that her injuries could
have been far more severe but she didn't
believe dangerous stunts should be
backed number 7 patty for mignon in 2007
varsity member patty fo mignon was
tossed during a stunt when she was
caught by the cheerleaders underneath
her for mignon suddenly became
unresponsive the high school student had
suffered cardiac arrest during practice
her doctors weren't able to determine
the reasons behind her condition it's
suspected that she'd suffered a hit to
the chest but this wasn't confirmed
because of oxygen deprivation to the
brain the teenager
ended up with severe systemic injuries
and was left in a comatose state several
days after the accident she was able to
engage him basic communication through
blinks speaking or move in her limbs
were abilities foam and Yong had lost in
the aftermath of the accident as a 20/20
his state hasn't improved and she
remains unable to move or eat on her own
[Music]
cheerleading hasn't always been a
female-dominated sport in fact up until
1999
it wasn't recognized as an independent
sport at all Johnny Campbell is
considered the father of cheerleading as
he created the first official squad in
1898 though there were pep clubs before
this they weren't properly assembled and
lacked organization the first
cheerleading fraternity Gamma Sigma
allowed only male members it wouldn't be
until 1923 that the first few women were
allowed to join the teams back then
modesty was vital and uniforms included
skirts past the knee even though some
colleges permitted their participation
it would take another 40 years for this
sport to be mostly associated with
female instead of male students more
recently in December 2016 cheerleading
was provisionally recognized by the
International Olympic Committee it's an
increasingly growing sport with at least
four and a half million registered
participants number six Jessica Smith
Jessica Smith was an eighteen year old
student at Sacramento City College when
she suffered a terrible accident while
performing with her cheerleading squad
Smith was the designated flyer but
something went wrong while trying a new
maneuver the cheerleader that was
supposed to catch her stumbled and Smith
hit the floor headfirst it was a fifteen
feet drop or the equivalent of two
average-sized Christmas trees piled one
on top of the other Smith fractured two
of her vertebrae and was told by the
doctors that she could have easily
become a paraplegic she might not have
survived the accident if she'd fallen an
inch to the left or the right
the young student had a halo device
bolted to her skull in order to keep her
head in place number five Michelle Smith
while practicing with her teammates
Michelle Smith was told to try a new
stunt she was worried about the risks
and asked the coach for an additional
spotter however she was told they were
none available upon request in a Matt
Smith received a similar answer as the
trainer didn't think it would make a
difference the high school student will
luck tintin the stunt but fell on the
ground and was immediately rushed to the
hospital her injuries were severe enough
for doctors to tell her she'd most
likely be wheelchair-bound for the rest
of her life
Smith filed a lawsuit against her school
and the teacher in charge who wasn't
certified as a cheerleading coach
according to the latest reports on her
recovery Smith continues to undergo
intense physical therapy but remains
unable to walk
[Music]
[Applause]
cheerleading began during the 1800s in
colleges around England it soon found
its way to American universities and
throughout the 1900s spread worldwide as
a popular activity for athletic young
students it's also practiced during
several professional sporting events as
a sideline entertainment the United
States quickly embraced the activity it
became such an icon of the high school
and college experience that for
different presidents joined cheer squads
in their youth Roosevelt at Harvard
Eisenhower at West Point Reagan at
Eureka and Bush senior at the Phillips
Academy even China eventually embraced
this sport set in a world record back in
2018 the largest chair was accomplished
by 2102 people in zhijiang
and has been added to the Guinness Book
of World Records another similar world
record was set in New Zealand in August
of 2017 when 60 girls created a single
giant pyramid number for Laura Jackson
when she was 14 years old Laura Jackson
was practicing a few stunts she had
learned during her training sessions as
a new cheerleader she'd been taught the
back tuck and decided to give it a try
while warming up in the school's gym a
16 year old student stood behind to spot
her when Jackson stumbled the other girl
froze unsure of what to do the 14 year
old hit her head so hard against the
floor that she cracked her scalp and had
to be rushed to the ER she'd broken her
c1 and c2 vertebrae and these bones kept
pressing on her brainstem
this caused her heart to stop repeatedly
Jackson had to spend seven months at the
hospital well she was eventually
released the teenager never fully
recovered she remains bound to a
wheelchair with a breathing tube in her
throat
Jackson requires help with everything
from eating to moving as she's paralyzed
from the neck down number three
he burns back in 2005 Ashley burns was
14 years old and had joined her
teammates for cheerleading practice at
the eastern leaf chair gym she was a
flyer and was attempted to perform a
move called the arabesque Double Down
something went terribly wrong when the
teenager was hit on the stomach by one
of her friends arms this caused her to
land hard and in the wrong position
she began complaining of a sharp pain in
her abdomen and an ambulance promptly
arrived burns had suffered an injury to
her spleen which caused massive internal
hemorrhaging her classmates told the
authorities that she was still alert
before being taken to the ER an hour and
a half after the accident Burns would be
dead as the bleedin had proven too
severe to contain today's topic was
requested by Instagram follower at Andy
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most accidents suffered during
cheerleading tend to result in non
catastrophic injuries this means they
aren't lethal or life-altering roughly
52 percent of these incidents are
related to sprains while only about 16
percent involved fractures and
dislocations
however cheerleading also owns the
highest catastrophic injuries rates
suffered by female athletes even though
only approximately three percent of all
high school students in the USA practice
cheerleading their accidents account for
65 percent of fatal or near fatal
injuries in this demographic head neck
and spine injuries can be extremely
severe and have lifelong consequences
contusions paralysis paraplegia and even
death a potential outcomes of failed
stunts during cheerleading competitions
mental and emotional complications are
possible consequences of injury and they
include depression mood swings and even
memory loss both short and long term
number two Krista parks Krista parks was
a member of the University of Memphis
cheerleading squad as she was petite and
athletic she was usually selected as the
designated flyer in the stunts during
one of these practices she fell 20 feet
and hit the ground headfirst she broke
her neck and suffered severe brain
trauma the resulted in her having to
endure three different surgeries she was
forced to wear a neck brace for months
and in later years of her physical
therapy a shunt was placed in her spine
to drain fluid as her body became unable
to complete this function Parks his long
lasting consequences weren't merely
physical she had to deal on a daily
basis with mood swings depression and
even went through episodes of memory
loss
the National Center for catastrophic
sports injuries has highlighted the
importance of exercising caution while
performing dangerous stunts they've
recommended safety guidelines that
should be upheld at all times usually a
number of security measures are ignored
this happens because of the time frame
that the athletes have to comply with or
other complications using mats during
stunts and pyramids is rarely practiced
though he could avoid hundreds of
preventable injuries cheerleader squads
have explained that they don't have the
time to place the protection gear during
half times of sporting events it's vital
for coaches to go through safety courses
and have on-site trainers during
performances during rainy days or when
the floor is wet advanced stunts should
be avoided or the venue where the
practice takes place should be changed
this rule is rarely followed which leads
to many preventable accidents before we
move on official they will kill you
merchandise is now available at bay will
kill you calm it's out of this world
[Applause]
number one Lauren Chang in 2018 20 year
old Lauren Chang was participating in
the Minuteman cheerleading Championships
when things took a turn for the worst
she attempted to perform a basket catch
routine but one of her teammates
accidentally kicked Chang in the chest
this sent the college student staggering
onto the floor where she passed out she
died shortly after
even though emergency services had
arrived almost immediately her death
certificate stated the cause of death
was complications from bilateral
pneumothoraces this is a type of injury
found in car crashes the lining of the
lungs swells rendering the patient
unable to breathe which inevitably leads
to death thanks for watching would you
rather fall from the top of a
cheerleading pyramid or show up to class
naked let us know in the comments
section below
[Music]