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World Cheerleading Championships 2022: What happened at this year's event?

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The 2022 ICU World Cheerleading Championships are now over and this year's competition has seen some impressive wins for the England team.

Top cheerleaders from around the world took part in the event at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, USA.

Team England Cheer, Team Scotland and Team Wales all competed at this year's event, joined by hundreds of other teams competing in lots of different disciplines.

So how did England fare? Read out to find out!

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What are the 2022 ICU World Cheerleading Championships?

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Cheerleading is a sport that requires a lot of strength and agility

The competition is huge in the cheerleading world, with 116 countries as members and teams from more than 50 countries are scheduled to compete in 2022.

Teams and individuals from around the world come to perform their routines in front of a panel of judges hoping to be crowned international champions.

There are junior an adult divisions, with teams competing in different categories for skills, styles and moves.

The event is spread over three days and with an opening and closing ceremony - similar to the Olympics.

What are the different categories?

  • Hip Hop

  • Pom

  • Jazz

  • Adaptive Abilities Unified Hip Hop

  • Adaptive Abilities Unified Pom

  • Special Abilities Unified Hip Hop

  • Special Abilities Unified Pom

  • Special Abilities Traditional Hip Hop

  • Special Abilities Traditional Pom

What happened this year?

Team England took part in the competition which was held in Orlando, Florida

2021's competition was a virtual event but this year saw teams gather in real life once again.

There were a number of events over the span of the competition which saw talented cheerleaders give everything they had in an attempt to secure a medal.

Team England managed to see off some stiff competition to come first in the Junior Coed Advanced division. They also secured the top spot in the Youth All Girl Median division.

Did you know?

Cheerleading became an Olympic sport in 2016

The United States has dominated the competition in the past and although the American team topped the leader's table in the majority of the events this year, they did face one surprising defeat.

Team Finland won the gold medal in the All-Girl Premier, making them them the only team to rank higher than the US in one of the main events.

The Welsh team also beat their American opponents in the Adaptive Abilities Unified L4 Co-ed Event.

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