All-Star Only Seniors Can Expose Midriff???

[xtremeteal4life]

So should college athletes be able to wear what they want because in the US we have freedom? Should Tebow be able to wear whatever he wants to play football in because he is a US citizen?
Are schools who have uniforms wrong because we have freedom in the US?

Look, I get what you're saying...but quite a bit of the reason Allstar appeals to so many people compared to high school competitive cheerleading is bc of some of the "girly" aspects of the sport and the creative freedom, whether it be from unis, choreography, stunting, curly hair, etc. We (the consumers..the people who actually pay everyone's bills) chose this sport and the gym we chose to participate in freely, and if a majority of parents wanted the preppy look, they wouldn't be in Allstar I think it's safe to assume. Or at the very least, they'll choose a gym whose "values", ideas, and attitudes vibe with their own.

 

[xpressjag]

if team USA can wear a full top, so can you.

I respect Team USA for their talent,but their uniform was not attractive in any shape or form, not even because its a full top. Just because it wasn't very attractive.

 

[Coach Troy]

I wanna shimmy this to the MOON!!!

 

[xtremeteal4life]

Out of the frying pan and into the fire...
Yes we live in a country that allows us the freedom to pretty much wear and say anything we want. But as an organized activity there are rules and regulations that must be followed. An NFL player was fined for wearing sneakers that were not regulation, a soccer team has a standard of uniform that every team wears. We have traffic laws for the same reason. Sure you can run that red light, you have that freedom but there are consequences to that as well.
If you don't like the idea of full tops...I get that and you are entitled to that opinion but where do we draw the line in our sport? Do we continue to get dragged through the media mud everytime a "reporter" decides to do an expose on cheer? Because that's what they focus on, not how well our kids perform but what they look like and they use it to delegitimize us at every turn.
As I have said before I could care less about the uniform rules. We belonged to a gym that the whole program wore full tops. My kids have belonged to enough organized sports that I get why they put them out. Our gym already adheres to most of what was listed anyway so it really doesn't effect us as much as a gym that allows their kids to run around in UGGS or be half dressed at awards (two of my biggest pet peeves).

That's not what CNN focused on at all and I'm sure that had more exposure than Ms. Shapiro's online article..

Also, professional athletes are paid for what they do
High school teams don't require money to be allowed to compete
We pay A LOT to be a part of our sport..comp fees AND entry fees to watch my child perform in a sport I already pay tons for..so I think I should have a little more say so in the grand scheme of things.

 

[xtremeteal4life]

I'm not going to argue with you because it is clearly going nowhere, but I would love to know when NFL players and NCAA basketball players became capable of choosing their own style and color of their uniforms...
The NFL and NCAA isn't going to let them wear whatever design they want, it must be approved.
USAG regulates what Shawn Johnson gets to compete in. She may get to choose the color, but she still has restrictions just like what the USASF is trying to do.

and yet we see more of her body than the girls competing in crop tops..those unis aren't exactly very forgiving in the areas that matter imo

 

[xtremeteal4life]

I wanna shimmy this to the MOON!!!

shimmy what? lol

 

[xpressjag]

I feel like the bottom line is this, All Stars are private organizations so you should get the freedom to design what your kids wear, within certain guidelines. People automatically assume because your stomach is covered it is more "conservative", "athletic", or promotes cheerleading as a sport. I have seen plenty of full and half tops that make girls look heavy, bloated or just simply not attractive. I believe the "IMAGE" issue in regards to boots, uggs, and being half of undressed at awards is great for our sport, but telling programs they can't wear a halftop because it legitimatizes our sport is absurd.

We could wear T shirts and shorts and that isn't going to legitimize the sport. I would say make consistent rules and a unified score sheet would be a good starting off point. Also try not changing the age and rule grid almost every season. Those are REAL issues, not if a girl is wearing her uniform around a convention center.

 

[xtremeteal4life]

A. If you really think that because you live in the USA you have all the freedom to do anything as you please, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that my comment is NOT the dumbest thing you have ever read.

B. I don't think anyone here thinks their opinion is the ONLY right opinion, but we live in the USA so you may think/say whatever you please, I'm not losing any sleep over it. :)

 

[Ashley]

That woman is a fraud. She is NOT a sports writer. She writes about..are you ready, FEMINIST and Middle Eastern issues. She was biased going in. Yeah I researched her and sent her and her editor a nice letter. Yeah it sucks that's how she portrayed it, but did you happen to see a little piece CNN did on Allstar and CEA? At least people could visibly see it's not how that reporter portrayed it be.

Oh no, not the big bad F word! Regardless of her biases going in, nothing she wrote is a lie, things are how the reporter portrayed it! That is how little girls in cheer dress and act and we just didn't like it because it didn't focus on the athletic side of things.

 

[Ashley]

I love that no matter what the champions of full tops just gloss over any and all arguments and stand on their pedestal of.....I don't know what :(

I have never put my athletes or my 2 daughters in a uniform that is provocative, sexual, or anything else. I cannot believe that we as a group are bowing to this kind of "straw man" arguments. The uniforms that our athletes perform in are not provocative and are not hurting our athletes. They are appropriate for the sport our athletes participate in.

Again I want YOU to have the freedom to choose a full top....wish I had the same

I don't think anyone is arguing that crop tops on 10 year olds are provocative or sexual. They're not, they're just a fact of our sport, but it's too easy for them to be perceived that way to outsiders. I don't care if we're seen as a sport or get to go to the Olympics, I'm just tired of having to explain my sport to those outside of it, who think that all I do is put on a skimpy uniform and lots of makeup and prance around a stage.

All that ztaprincess is arguing is that if our sport goes full tops for everyone junior and under, we're not going to have any less freedom than any other sports in what they wear. Gymnasts can't have their midriffs showing or have backless leotards in competition, they can wear whatever they want to practice I'm sure. Basketball players can't play a game without their shirt on, it's part of the uniform. You still have plenty of options to customize you're uniform. It's like you're saying that if that rule gets passed, we're going to be way more limited in our uniform choices than any other sport, and that's just not the case, whether you think half tops should be allowed or not.

 

[omgitssydthekid]

My gym already only has our highest team (4/5) wearing crop tops. All of our other teams (mini 1 prep, tiny 1 prep, special needs, mini 1, youth 2, senior 3) wear full tops so this rule doesn't affect us, but I do think that it is a dumb rule because it has loopholes.

 

[xtremeteal4life]

Oh no, not the big bad F word! Regardless of her biases going in, nothing she wrote is a lie, things are how the reporter portrayed it! That is how little girls in cheer dress and act and we just didn't like it because it didn't focus on the athletic side of things.

Actually you have no idea what you're talking about :rolleyes: ..She did, in fact, lie. She outright made up lies and if you're really that interested (you must be since you bothered to search for it) perhaps you should read the entire thread and see what Lymarie had to say about it before making inaccurate assumptions about the article....and actually bias is a huge thing in journalism and should be avoided if possible. Furthermore, would you not at least expect a sports journalist to cover an article in a sports magazine?! Do you think the PGA would up in arms if some woman who has never written an article in her life about anything sports related, wrote an an article intended to be nothing more than a fluff piece from the beginning? Give me a break! I have no problem w/feminists or accurate and credible journalism, considering both of my grandmother's were reporters and one was the first female editor of a newspaper in Oak Ridge, TN for over 30 years....and her daughter worked for the house of representatives..so yeah, the big bad F word doesn't quite have the impact on me you were probably expecting ;)

 

[xtremeteal4life]

I don't think anyone is arguing that crop tops on 10 year olds are provocative or sexual. They're not, they're just a fact of our sport, but it's too easy for them to be perceived that way to outsiders. I don't care if we're seen as a sport or get to go to the Olympics, I'm just tired of having to explain my sport to those outside of it, who think that all I do is put on a skimpy uniform and lots of makeup and prance around a stage.

All that ztaprincess is arguing is that if our sport goes full tops for everyone junior and under, we're not going to have any less freedom than any other sports in what they wear. Gymnasts can't have their midriffs showing or have backless leotards in competition, they can wear whatever they want to practice I'm sure. Basketball players can't play a game without their shirt on, it's part of the uniform. You still have plenty of options to customize you're uniform. It's like you're saying that if that rule gets passed, we're going to be way more limited in our uniform choices than any other sport, and that's just not the case, whether you think half tops should be allowed or not.

Yet oddly we see more of their bodies in an inappropriate way than we do w/the current unis worn in Allstar

 

[Ashley]

Yet oddly we see more of their bodies in an inappropriate way than we do w/the current unis worn in Allstar

It's not about how much skin is shown, if you can defend it. Again, I don't care if a 10 year old wears a crop top, if you can find a reason why it's necessary to the sport, other than "because we like it," "it's more comfortable," (for 2 1/2 minutes??) or "that's how it's always been". Gymnasts arguably need to be in a leotard so judges can see their lines. But they have strict rules about how high the leg holes can be cut (not higher than the hipbone) and the style (no spaghetti strap leotards, no midriffs, no backless leos). We still see plenty of unique and fun leotards.

I'm not advocating for knee length poodle skirts, but the only cheerleaders that you could even argue need to have crop tops are coed flyers, and that's only really even necessary in senior and open divisions. But again, Team USA did just fine in full length tops so that's clearly not 100% necessary.

 

[flcheermom]

I think maybe guidelines for uniforms should be followed - that is just common sense - meaning the length of the crop top and the skirt - and then leave it up to each program to design their uniforms following the guidelines... have to cover the shoulders.no cut outs, etc. I think that would have been more appropriate than mandating full tops. Then the programs that want full tops can continue to do so, and the programs that want crop tops may just have to adjust (some of them) the way they design their uniforms for 2015 - that gives them time to design new ones if the current ones do not follow the guidelines. There is nothing wrong with setting reasonable uniform guidelines and expecting programs to follow them- but they seem to be going backwards in their ruling of full tops....

I do agree with the presentation aspect while at comps. I dont think they mean you have to come fully dressed if you are there at 8am and don't compete till later. You could wear your gym's warm ups, or gym t-shirt and soffee shorts - to change later.... I dont think they want you wearing your crop top with pajama pants - I can't tell you how many times I have seen girls walking around in sports bra's and their skirts unzipped and flip flops.... or changing in the seats - does not look good! I am not really sure about the t-shirt over the uniform when not in the warm -up area - but then again like I said they have probably seen one too many instances of sports bra's and skirts - or I have just seen sports bra's and hot pants walking around venues...