4th Annual National Cheerleading Competition

The New Zealand Cheer Union (NZCU) is holding its 4th annual Cheerleading Nationals competition at The Barfoot & Thompson Stadium, Kohimarama, Auckland on the 26th, 27th and 28th of October 2018 and it is set to be an event you don’t want to miss. Due to the high number of registrations this year the competition has expanded from the previous 2 day event to 3 days, with over 300 different items competing over the weekend. Athletes are set to travel from all over the country to battle it out for the NZCU Nationals 2018 titles.

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The type of cheerleading that will be showcased at this event is far from the sports game side-line stereotype that most people would think of. Teams are judged on a two and a half minute routine that is crammed full of acrobatic tumbling, stunting and basket tosses, where 'flyers' are lifted and thrown into the air to pull different tricks. The routines also include energetic dance moves, high-octane music mixes and amazing uniforms, making the end result a definite crowd pleaser.

Divisions showcased in this competition will include cheerleading teams from private clubs and schools from around New Zealand. There will also be individual, duo and stunt team cheer speciality divisions as well as dance divisions which showcase individuals and dance teams. This competition will have internationally qualified cheer and dance judges to ensure everyone is judged fairly and at a really high standard. Not only will we see many teams return to defend their title but a number of new teams will attend as challengers ready to see if they have what it takes to bring home the title.

The board of the NZCU consists of volunteers that donate their time, expertise and knowledge for the love and growth of cheerleading. Over the last year they have been focusing on the growth of specialty items such as individual, duo and stunt routines, especially at the regional competition level. The introduction of NZCU Nationals specialty qualifying criteria saw a large increase of entries at the NZCU sanctioned regional events. Throughout the year athletes worked even harder to gain qualification in their division at regional competition, with the goal of competing at Nationals as their inspiration. As a result over 130 performances are entered to compete this weekend in these divisions alone.
The technical standards of the sport throughout the country has been improving in leaps and bounds each year. We see teams continue to raise the benchmark making prizegiving an exciting and suspense-filled part of every competition. This standard has been proven on the international stage with a number of team competing internationally in Australia and USA, bringing home gold as well as international Grand Champion titles. These internationally competing clubs who are attending this weekend will have their work cut out for them as the rest of the country bring their best efforts to this fierce competition arena to once again bring their titles home.

The NZCU Nationals will be held at The Barfoot & Thompson Stadium, Kohimarama, Auckland on the 26th, 27th and 28th of October 2018. Doors will open at 3:30pm Friday for the Dance division, 8:30am Saturday for specialties and club team divisions and 9:30am on Sunday for scholastic, university and Club teams. Entry for spectators is $10 per day or $25 for a 3 day pass and free for under 5s.Tickets can be purchased at the door with cash and eftpos available. It will be an event not to miss and will provide entertainment for the entire family.

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