U of A cheerleading team heads to the world championships

The University of Alberta’s cheerleading team is heading to Sweden to compete at the Fédération Internationale du Sport Universitaire (FISU) World University Cheerleading Championships. They will represent Canada in the all-girl elite division on June 5–7. 

Abigail Muddle, a kinesiology student, has been cheering with the U of A’s team since her first year. 

“I was a competitive gymnast for like 16 years … so I wanted to still do something competitive and where I could do all my skills tumbling-wise,” she said. That led her to join the cheer team.

“And then I stuck around because of the amazing coaches that I have, they just make it such a welcoming environment. And honestly, the teammates.”

The team has only had about two months to prepare for the competition. Since their competition season ended in March[,] the team has been training hard and fine–tuning their routine. 

They train three times a week — even through final exams season — and had to learn new skills for the routines. Unlike court-side performances that are mostly focused on cheers, there’s a lot more stunts in their competition routine. 

In addition to training, the team has been fundraising to help pay for the trip to Sweden. The team is also self-funded so team members pay out-of-pocket for the competition.

“Knowing that you get to represent your country and make them proud is such a great feeling,” Muddle says

This will be Muddle’s second time competing in the FISU games. She competed with the U of A’s cheer team in the 2024 FISU Games and the team ultimately won gold. 

Getting to compete internationally again, she said she’s most excited to meet other athletes from different countries.

“Last time we went, we made really good friends with team Australia, and now that there’s another team Canada going, it would be really nice to connect with them more,” she said. 

The University of British Columbia’s cheer team will also be competing in the co-ed premier division.

She’s also excited to represent Canada on the world stage.

“It’s hard to describe,” she said. “It’s a really almost grateful feeling to be able to go, and number one, do these kinds of skills and compete, but also knowing that you get to represent your country and make them proud is such a great feeling.”