A member of DBCP’s technical support team has taken America by storm with her cheerleding team. Her team, Rotherham-based Trailblazer Allstars, secured a top 10 finish in the Cheerleading Allstar World Championships in Orlando, Florida recently.
Jade Sheppard (25) took a break from DBCP’s Chesterfield office to jet off to the US and compete in the finals on the 23 – 25 April.
More than 10,500 cheerleaders from more than 500 teams and 40 countries took part in the three-day event at Disney World.
The Senior All Girl level 7 team did brilliantly, finishing ninth in the 2022 World Championship after battling against 23 other teams in their division.
Jade, who is a flyer in the team, which means she often spends a lot of team in the air and is the main focus of stunts, said: “We had a great experience and we’re delighted with the final results. It was a wobbly warm up ahead of the first run and, even though it wasn’t perfect and we had to deal with some last minute injuries, we felt we put on a good performance. We did enough to make it through to day two to compete amongst the final 12.
“After receiving some feedback from the judging panel, we ended up introducing a brand new stunt to our routine. It was a huge risk but I think it definitely paid off. We had a great run on day two and were thrilled to claim ninth place..”
Jade’s team competes at the sport’s highest level and practices twice a week, with a few extra sessions to prepare for competitions. Each team member also has their own training regimes to keep fit throughout the year, meeting the high physical demand of allstar cheerleading.
She added: “It’s difficult to deal with the nerves when you’re waiting to perform the routine you’ve been working on for so long. Being one of the more senior members of the team, I do see it as my responsibility not only to make sure I’m ready, but to help the others stay calm and just enjoy it when we step onto that floor.”
Keen to compete again, Trailblazer Allstars will be heading to Allstar Nationals in Liverpool later this year. They also hope to visit Dallas, Texas, for the National Championships in 2023.
To read more about the Trailblazer Allstars and their achievements, please visit here.
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