Chelsea Matteson and the Great White Sharks cheerleading team are circling, hoping to take a bite out of your television viewing habits.
The two-time world cheerleading champion Sharks are featured in the 10-episode ABC Spark reality show Cheer Squad. The show follows the 24 elite athletes on their quest to balance the challenges of life off the mat with the battle to stay on top of the international cheerleading podium.
“It still doesn’t feel real to see us on television every week. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it,” said Chelsea, a 15-year-old Bishop Tonnos student who will be attending St. Thomas More this fall. “We have a viewing party every Wednesday night with family and friends, and my mom and my aunt always cry and say, ‘That’s our little girl.’”
Chelsea was an elite gymnast ranked 11th in Canada in 2013 when she gave up the sport that had kept her occupied for 11 years. She wanted to continue tumbling so signed up for classes at Cheer Sport Sharks’ Ancaster location.
In February 2014, her expertise and strength as a tumbler piqued the interest of Great Whites Sharks coach Ali Moffatt.
Chelsea said she didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation to join the best cheerleading team in the world.
“I was really open-minded when (Ali)asked me to join the Great Whites,” she said. “I thought, ‘Well, we’ll give this a try. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.”’
Now going into her third year with the Cambridge-based cheerleading team, Chelsea said the bond between the athletes who range in age from 13 to 26 keeps her involved. Team members have sleepovers, dinner dates, share advice and are focused on the goal of continuing to be the world’s best.
In the past two years, competitions have taken the Sharks to provincial, national and world championships across North America. In competition, teams are judged based on technique, difficulty, energy and performance in a 2 1/2-minute routine.
“It’s a lot of fun and I want to do it as long as my body can take it,” said Chelsea.
At the age of 14, the Ancaster resident was the youngest member of the Great White Sharks when she joined in 2014. She takes a starring role in episodes two and five of the television show Cheer Squad.
Great Whites coach Moffatt said viewers of the show will see the behind-the-scene life the athletes and coaches, warts and all.
“There’s going to be moments where maybe the team is a little more vulnerable and things that haven’t been seen before are going to be seen, but certainly that’s one of the risks or thoughts as we go through this process,” said Moffatt. “It’s not always going to be good; no sport is, no team is, no life is, there’s always going to be ups and downs.
Moffatt said the team’s story will likely resonate with viewers, despite the fact most people know the Great White Sharks’ 2015-16 season ended with a bronze medal.
“I think there are people who aren’t in tune as much with the actual results,” she said. “Even if someone does know the end result, knowing the steps that it takes to get there...and the dramatic events that surround that, it’s still a story onto itself.”
The first one-hour Cheer Squad episode debuted on July 6 on ABC Spark. The show continues at 9 p.m. on Wednesdays.
— With files from the Cambridge Times
Chelsea Matteson and the Great White Sharks cheerleading team are circling, hoping to take a bite out of your television viewing habits.
The two-time world cheerleading champion Sharks are featured in the 10-episode ABC Spark reality show Cheer Squad. The show follows the 24 elite athletes on their quest to balance the challenges of life off the mat with the battle to stay on top of the international cheerleading podium.
“It still doesn’t feel real to see us on television every week. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it,” said Chelsea, a 15-year-old Bishop Tonnos student who will be attending St. Thomas More this fall. “We have a viewing party every Wednesday night with family and friends, and my mom and my aunt always cry and say, ‘That’s our little girl.’”
Chelsea was an elite gymnast ranked 11th in Canada in 2013 when she gave up the sport that had kept her occupied for 11 years. She wanted to continue tumbling so signed up for classes at Cheer Sport Sharks’ Ancaster location.
In February 2014, her expertise and strength as a tumbler piqued the interest of Great Whites Sharks coach Ali Moffatt.
Chelsea said she didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation to join the best cheerleading team in the world.
“I was really open-minded when (Ali)asked me to join the Great Whites,” she said. “I thought, ‘Well, we’ll give this a try. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.”’
Now going into her third year with the Cambridge-based cheerleading team, Chelsea said the bond between the athletes who range in age from 13 to 26 keeps her involved. Team members have sleepovers, dinner dates, share advice and are focused on the goal of continuing to be the world’s best.
In the past two years, competitions have taken the Sharks to provincial, national and world championships across North America. In competition, teams are judged based on technique, difficulty, energy and performance in a 2 1/2-minute routine.
“It’s a lot of fun and I want to do it as long as my body can take it,” said Chelsea.
At the age of 14, the Ancaster resident was the youngest member of the Great White Sharks when she joined in 2014. She takes a starring role in episodes two and five of the television show Cheer Squad.
Great Whites coach Moffatt said viewers of the show will see the behind-the-scene life the athletes and coaches, warts and all.
“There’s going to be moments where maybe the team is a little more vulnerable and things that haven’t been seen before are going to be seen, but certainly that’s one of the risks or thoughts as we go through this process,” said Moffatt. “It’s not always going to be good; no sport is, no team is, no life is, there’s always going to be ups and downs.
Moffatt said the team’s story will likely resonate with viewers, despite the fact most people know the Great White Sharks’ 2015-16 season ended with a bronze medal.
“I think there are people who aren’t in tune as much with the actual results,” she said. “Even if someone does know the end result, knowing the steps that it takes to get there...and the dramatic events that surround that, it’s still a story onto itself.”
The first one-hour Cheer Squad episode debuted on July 6 on ABC Spark. The show continues at 9 p.m. on Wednesdays.
— With files from the Cambridge Times
Chelsea Matteson and the Great White Sharks cheerleading team are circling, hoping to take a bite out of your television viewing habits.
The two-time world cheerleading champion Sharks are featured in the 10-episode ABC Spark reality show Cheer Squad. The show follows the 24 elite athletes on their quest to balance the challenges of life off the mat with the battle to stay on top of the international cheerleading podium.
“It still doesn’t feel real to see us on television every week. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it,” said Chelsea, a 15-year-old Bishop Tonnos student who will be attending St. Thomas More this fall. “We have a viewing party every Wednesday night with family and friends, and my mom and my aunt always cry and say, ‘That’s our little girl.’”
Chelsea was an elite gymnast ranked 11th in Canada in 2013 when she gave up the sport that had kept her occupied for 11 years. She wanted to continue tumbling so signed up for classes at Cheer Sport Sharks’ Ancaster location.
In February 2014, her expertise and strength as a tumbler piqued the interest of Great Whites Sharks coach Ali Moffatt.
Chelsea said she didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation to join the best cheerleading team in the world.
“I was really open-minded when (Ali)asked me to join the Great Whites,” she said. “I thought, ‘Well, we’ll give this a try. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.”’
Now going into her third year with the Cambridge-based cheerleading team, Chelsea said the bond between the athletes who range in age from 13 to 26 keeps her involved. Team members have sleepovers, dinner dates, share advice and are focused on the goal of continuing to be the world’s best.
In the past two years, competitions have taken the Sharks to provincial, national and world championships across North America. In competition, teams are judged based on technique, difficulty, energy and performance in a 2 1/2-minute routine.
“It’s a lot of fun and I want to do it as long as my body can take it,” said Chelsea.
At the age of 14, the Ancaster resident was the youngest member of the Great White Sharks when she joined in 2014. She takes a starring role in episodes two and five of the television show Cheer Squad.
Great Whites coach Moffatt said viewers of the show will see the behind-the-scene life the athletes and coaches, warts and all.
“There’s going to be moments where maybe the team is a little more vulnerable and things that haven’t been seen before are going to be seen, but certainly that’s one of the risks or thoughts as we go through this process,” said Moffatt. “It’s not always going to be good; no sport is, no team is, no life is, there’s always going to be ups and downs.
Moffatt said the team’s story will likely resonate with viewers, despite the fact most people know the Great White Sharks’ 2015-16 season ended with a bronze medal.
“I think there are people who aren’t in tune as much with the actual results,” she said. “Even if someone does know the end result, knowing the steps that it takes to get there...and the dramatic events that surround that, it’s still a story onto itself.”
The first one-hour Cheer Squad episode debuted on July 6 on ABC Spark. The show continues at 9 p.m. on Wednesdays.
— With files from the Cambridge Times