Cheerleading Safety From AACCA. Solutions to address the risks involved in cheerleading.

Now that basketball season is in full swing it is time for a reminder about the specific restrictions for basketball court surfaces. These additional restrictions are intended to reduce the risk of a catastrophic injury to a cheerleader. Coaches must be familiar with and follow the current cheerleading safety rules at www.aacca.org.

The combination of the specific surface and the fact that cheering for basketball often involves performing on the actual field of play requires that additional skill restrictions are followed.

The exact wording of the basketball court rules for college teams are as follows:

Specific Basketball/Indoor Court Rules

1. On a basketball court surface, the following skills are prohibited except during halftime or postgame performances where the area is free of obstructions and non-cheer personnel, and all skills are performed on a matted surface. Pregame and timeouts are not exceptions to this rule and are subject to the listed restrictions.
   1. Basket tosses, elevator/sponge tosses and other similar multi-based tosses.
   2. Partner stunts in which the base uses only one arm to support the top person. Exception: Cupies/awesomes are allowed with an additional spotter.
   3. Flips or released twists into or from partner stunts. Exception: Front and back flips to a stunt or cradle are allowed if the top person is braced on both sides by hand/arm to hand/arm contact.
   4. Two and one half person high pyramids.
   5. Inversions in partner stunts and pyramids. Exception: Inversions that begin on the ground and go to an upright position where the top person is in constant contact with a base or spotter are allowed.
   6. Twisting tumbling skills.

(Note: High School Basketball Court Rules can be found here)

If you question whether one of your intended skills is included in these restrictions, do not hesitate to contact the AACCA office for a ruling.

What if I see a violation?

As part of the College Cheerleading Safety Initiative  (CCSI), there is a process for the AACCA to address rules violations.  This process is in place to help with rule compliance, but could eventually result in the removal of safety certification of the coach. In effect, this could remove the catastrophic insurance coverage for the team. The process is laid out in detail on the CCSI site (http://www.aacca.org/ccsi).

Again, the intent is compliance, not punishment.  We want teams to be following the rules. However, in order to help enforce the restrictions that are in place, we have to rely on coaches self-policing each other.  If you witness a team violating the AACCA rules, please let us know via our “Violation Report Form” found on our CCSI page at  (http://www.aacca.org/ccsi/decertification.asp).  No information regarding who turned a team in is released, and reports can be turned in anonymously*.

But I don’t want to get someone in trouble

The most important issue is the safety of those participating in cheerleading. The rules are written to minimize the chance of having a life-changing injury to a cheerleader. That alone should be the reason for contacting AACCA in a matter like this.  The “decertification” policy includes incremental steps that begin with making sure there is an actual violation vs. a misinterpretation of the rule. In the event of an actual violation, the supervising coach would get their first of three possible strikes before losing their certification.  Correspondence regarding a strike is kept between the AACCA, the coach and the institution.

Can anyone submit a violation report?

Absolutely. For example, if a cheerleader knows that the skill they are doing is prohibited, they can send a report in anonymously*. As coaches and cheerleaders, it is imperative for the safety of the cheerleaders in our care that everyone is following the rules.

* While every report is investigated, keep in mind that the more evidence (photos, video, or witnesses) available, the better the opportunity to get the issue resolved.  If we need additional information, it will be impossible to follow up on an anonymous report. An anonymous report stating that “State College was doing something illegal at a game” doesn’t allow us the opportunity to be effective in keeping State College in compliance.