Watt is Cheerleading?
Cheerleading originally involved participants chanting phrases in order to motivate and encourage their team at sports matches and entertain the crowd watching the sport. But cheerleading has evolved and is no longer just girls with pom-poms at the sidelines of high school football matches, it has changed massively over the last couple of decades and now involves gravity-defying stunts!
While cheerleading in high schools still exists, the sport is now more focused on all-star teams competing against one another. Cheerleading routines are made up of four elements: stunts, jumps, tumble and dance. Teams are judged on technique, execution, synchronisation, and overall performance. The International Olympic Committee officially recognised cheerleading as a sport in 2021 and now we’ll hopefully see cheerleading in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles!
Heriot-Watt Cheerleading Club received club status within the Sports Union in 2014. Our club is focussed on All-Star cheer, welcoming all levels of ability and experience; it doesn’t matter if you have no experience whatsoever in cheerleading, gymnastics or dance, you’re welcome to join us!
Competitions
We have two competition teams that compete in university cheer competitions at various times throughout the year. Try-outs are held in Semester 1 for those who wish to compete as a part of our Level 1 or Level 2 completion teams. We spend the weeks leading up to try-outs introducing the basics of cheer and allow everyone to build a basic grasp of the sport. If members don’t want to compete there are plenty recreational opportunities such as the rec performance at our annual showcase.
This is the second year of our Pom competition team. This team will compete at the same competitions as our level 1 and level 2 teams, but in a different division. Our competition season usually starts mid-way through semester 2 so there is plenty time to perfect our routines before hand!
Training
| Pom | Monday | 18:00-20:00 | Studio 1, Oriam |
| Tumble | Wednesday | 7:00-9:00 | Studio 2, Oriam |
| Recreational | Wednesday | 14:15-16:15 | Studio 2, Oriam |
| Level 1 Comp | Sunday | 16:00-18:00 | Studio 2, Oriam |
| Level 2 Comp | Sunday | 18:00-21:00 | Studio 2, Oriam |
Coaches
Our club wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of our coaching team and we’re so grateful for them!
Head Coaches – Emma Capes
Assistant Coaches – Niamh Naylor, Kira Malde, Kate Cartmell, Caitlin Reavey
Pom Captain – Ally Fernie
Committee 24/25
We are thankful to have a large committee to help run our club and grateful for all the hard work and effort they put in to making cheer so much fun.
President – Shannon Power
Vice President – Zoe Matheson
Competition Coordinator – Neda Peneva
Treasurer – Hannah Macdonald
Well-being Officer – Fern Beaumont
Social Secretaries – Caitlin Reavey & Lucy Hewitt
Fundraiser – Abbie Taylor
Social Media Officer – Sophie Bain
Social Media
Instagram – hwucheer
Tiktok – hwucheer