‘They gave everything’ - South Tyneside cheerleaders become world champions in Florida
A South Tyneside cheerleading group have been crowned world champions.
Twenty-two cheerleaders from South Tyneside JETS Cheerleading travelled to Florida in April to compete in the Allstar World Championships.
The JETS had to compete in a bid event in Stoke last year to secure a place in the US competition, which took place over two days (Thursday, April 17, and Friday, April 18).
Emma Mcardle, the head coach/director of South Tyneside JETS Cheerleading, has revealed that since securing the bid, the girls have been training solidly since August 2024 to prepare for the world championships.
The girls, who are all aged between 12 and 17-years-old, had secured first place on the first day of the competition - ahead of going through to day two when they were crowned the winners.
Emma has expressed her pride in the work rate of the girls who competed, especially after they were knocked out on day one in the same competition last year.
She said: “I don’t think there are any words to describe how it feels, as a coach, I just felt so proud of them, especially after they’ve worked so hard.
“The work they put in is second to none, it wasn’t like they just rolled out of bed and won Allstar Worlds - they’d been putting in the work for months.
“We were there last year but we were knocked out and didn’t make day two, so we were coming for redemption this year.
“Our goal was to always make day two so to win is just an extra bonus.
“The girls were so ecstatic that they had exceeded all expectations and had achieved what they had set out to do.
“It takes a lot of resilience for them to put it on the floor because the routine has to be perfect, so a two-and-a-half minute routine can be really draining.
“They just gave everything that they possibly could.”
Emma also heaped praise on the girls’ parents for their efforts and support, which helped bring the world championship crown back to South Tyneside.
She added: “The parents are massive supporters and we couldn’t do it without them - especially because of their commitment, their dedication and paying for the girls to go to Florida.
“The parents are already asking if we are going back next year but we’re still trying to come down from this high first.
“It wasn’t just a win for the JETS but it was a win for the borough, the parents and for the girls competing - it is just a massive achievement.
“From a little club that started 12 years ago to now being world champions is just indescribable.
“At Allstar Worlds, you compete against the best of the best and given that we were in a really tough division, I feel like we’ve had history for our programme.”
You can find out more about South Tyneside JETS Cheerleading by visiting: https://www.southtynesidejetscheerleading.com/.
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