Cheerleading may be most hazardous ’sport’ of all

2010-01-06 05:44:00 (GMT) (JusticeNewsFlash.com - Justice News Flash, Personal Injury)

Legal News for Florida Personal Injury Lawyers. Cheerleading deemed one of the most dangerous athletic activities.

CPSC injury statistics show that 30,000 cheerleaders sustained injuries.

West Palm Beach, FL—In a recent report, cheerleading was noted for being one of the most dangerous athletic activities although it is still vastly unrecognized as a sport, ABC News reports. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) http://www.cpsc.gov, there were approximately 30,000 instances in which cheerleaders were taken to the emergency room after sustaining injuries in 2008. Over the past thirty years, it was noted that cheerleading emergency room visits multiplied by about six.

One contributing factor to these staggeringly high injury statistics could be that uniform safety precautions and skill training methods are reportedly lacking since cheerleading is not formally considered a sport. It was noted that cheer coaches simply have to pass an open-book test to become certified. Since many cheerleaders are presently on competitive squads, the degree of difficulty has allegedly increased tremendously and subsequently, so have the number of injuries.

For instance, former high school cheerleader Patty Phommanyvong suffered from a tragic injury in which her breathing ceased. Her parents allegedly claimed that the schools defibrillator malfunctioned, leaving her without oxygen for 45 minutes, which left her permanently paralyzed after sustaining such severe brain damage. Phommanyvong’s parents are reportedly suing the school for failing to act appropriately in regards to their daughters’ traumatic injury.

Injuries that result in permanent spinal damage and paralysis are regarded as ‘catastrophic’. In the cheerleading industry, a reported 73 of these catastrophic injuries have occurred between 1982 and 2008, with two resulting in death. On the other hand, a total of nine catastrophic injuries were recorded in the same time period in regards to gymnastics. Critics allegedly claim that these unfortunate injury statistics will most likely remain generally unchanged until cheerleading is recognized as a sport.

Legal News Reporter: Sandra Quinlan- Legal News for Florida Personal Injury Lawyers.