All-Star For athletes considering either STUNT or NCATA next year..

[King]

Here are some things you need to know:

http://spiritpost.com/squared/2010/11/nca-college-nationals-eligibility-faqs/

 

[mdcheerdiva]

This comment is very interesting below. So my question would be why is USA Cheer/STUNT providing answers about the NCATA when they obviously dont have the correct information?

A bit of clarification:
NCATA is not governed by USA Gymnastics. This statement is a bit misleading at best. USA Gymnastics is sanctioning the NCATA competitions. What exactly does this mean? USA Gymnastics is providing an insurance policy to the NCATA for their competitions, athletes and officials. For this 'sanctioning', they will follow a set of rules designed to strictly benefit. Some of these are: a full background check on all coaches and officials as all USAG members have, a safety certification clinic and exam prepared by some the leading movement biomechanics, a large, very detailed insurance policy, read and sign a Code of Ethics, and the guarantee to the athletes that the competition will be conducted using the NCATA guidelines as written.

What exactly does sanctioning NOT mean?
USA Gymnastics does not regulate NCATA or it's policies, how they run their competitions, what they are to have in their routines, etc. They are providing the platform for the professionals involved (NCATA) to take a step forward as they (USAG) has for the betterment of the new sport. All sports have or are heading in the direction of USA Gymnastics...;they are requiring background checks for the safety of athletes, they are adapting Code of Ethics for their professional members, have created a Participant Welfare Policy, register all of their members (athletes, coaches, officials, administrators, etc). And by aligning with the NCAA rules, the athletes can be tested for prohibited substances and are held to academic standards at their respective schools. If these are the benefits of "aligning" with USA Gymnastics and the NCAA then this is a good thing!

Additional clarification: "The NCATA is a form of acrobatics and tumbling specifically associated with gymnastics..."
The NCATA format is NOT just tumbling (or gymnastics as inferred). The format of a NCATA competition is as follows:
1. Compulsory Event (all perform the same) set of: Stunt Heat, Pyramid Heat, Basket Toss Heat, Tumbling Heats.
2. Stunt Event: 3 Heats
3. Pyramid Event
4. Basket Toss: 3 Heats
5. Tumbling Event: 6 Heats
6. Team Routine of 2.5 mins (where more than 1/3 of the team score comes from)
This format looks like it takes the best of the athleticism of tumbling and traditional cheer parts and puts them together in an exciting to watch event. The NCATA is EMBRACING the best of what cheer and gymnastics together offers.

Regarding: "NCA would also not allow a collegiate women’s gymnastics team to compete in our cheer events as well." Is this implying that NCATA would? Of course, a women's gymnastics team would not compete in a NCATA event, nor an ice skating event, or a track event. Do not understand the parallel that is trying to be made here.

Regarding the inclusion or exclusion of NCA/NCATA in competitions:
The NCATA, by adhering to NCAA all-sport regulations, must follow: "...a student-athlete in any sport other than basketball who participates during the academic year as a member of any outside team in any non-collegiate,
amateur competition, becomes ineligible for intercollegiate competition in that sport for the remainder of the year and for the next academic year..." (excluding World Championships or Olympic Games) The NCA has taken the narrow position to not allow any team/club that participates in a NCATA competition to then attend their Nationals.....Why this rule and why now?

The NCATA is not trying to change/takeover anything in the current cheer world. The vision is to provide student-athlete opportunities for women at the collegiate level in a recognized sport. The NCATA follows the NCAA rules and guidelines set forth for all student-athletes. Again, they are not governed by USA Gymnastics. The NCATA focus is not on profit but rather on opportunity. They are a registered non-profit 501(c)3 very focused group working for a common goal.

Who would not want their daughter to have this additional opportunity for her future?

 

[njcheerfan]

Well put...and researched mdcheerdiva. All I can say is that my close friend is in her first year at UMD and is loving every aspect of comp cheer. The format is so different from her all-star years but it is a welcome difference. She's in college now and things should be different. The focus is academics first (your in college now) and the team totally follows NCAA guidelines. There is so much support from study hall to coaching and athletic training. The icing on the cake is that she is stronger than ever and is learning even more difficult skills (stunting/pyramid etc). Everything is run so professionally. What more could you want. What an incredible accomplishment for these talented girls, after years of all-star to make it to this level. I can't wait to see a meet.

 

[Katybugmom]

I would love to see this format for younger teams. I feel like it would take some of the politics out of the competitions and scoring that I have seen. It would be a lot cheaper for the parents because the focus would not be on all the lights, smoke and huge venues it would be focussed on the talent. Is there any plans for this coming down to younger teams?