By VIVIENNE WONG & NAVEENA JAMES
alltherage@thestar.com.my
Last year’s winning cheer teams talk about their goals for CHEER 2015.
Rayvens (Junior Category)
Captain: Lee Cher-Maine, 15, SMK Seri KL
“This year, we need to upgrade all our stunts to level 3 (a higher level of difficulty), which will be tough. But I believe our spirit and determination, which led us to victory last year, will lead us to success once again at CHEER 2015.”
Cyrens (All -girls Category)
Captain: Genevieve Liew Shan Jun, 17, SMK Seri KL
“There is definitely added pressure on our team, especially since we’ve been champions for the past five years. But we’re not letting it affect us. Ultimately, our aim is to put up a good show and just have fun every time we perform, which is the reason why Cyrens have done so well over the years.”
Zodiac (Co-ed Category)
Team member: Sharyl Perera, 18, SMK Kepong
“Last year, what motivated us to victory was the drive to regain our title, after winning in 2012. I believe we can win it again this year as we’ve been working twice as hard with our coach Jonathan Gale.”
Read all about the CHEER 2015 launch here!
Grant winners revealed!
The winners of the first CHEER Foundation grant will be putting their new funds to good use.
BLOOD, sweat and tears were shed to get to where they are now. And we’re proud to award three deserving schools RM10,000 each under The Star’s CHEER Foundation grant.
Congratulations to teams Anselm, Vibrant and Blitzerz of SMK Infant Jesus Convent, SMK Puteri Titiwangsa and SMK Bandar Utama Damansara 4!
These teams were handpicked based on their cheerleading skills, past achievements, cheerleaders’ academic performance and essays on why they deserve the fund.
Here, the team captains reveal what they’re planning to do with the financial boost.
Lee Zhi Wee, 17, captain of Anselm, SMK Infant Jesus Convent. RAYMOND OOI/ The Star
“It’s so hard to get coaches in Melaka. Even if we wanna invite some from KL, it’s going to be so expensive. But now, we’ll be able to get better coaching because all winners have proper professional training and we want that too. And we’ve got lots of new members so we’ll definitely need all the help we can get. We’re also thinking of getting new cheerleading shoes. Our current ones are kinda like school shoes.”
Lee Ivy, 18, captain of Vibrant, SMK Puteri Titiwangsa. RAYMOND OOI/ The Star
“Last time, we really had no money. I mean, we wore the same uniform for three years! It’s really not easy getting money for cheer, so we sold cakes, badges and t-shirts to pay for our team and supporters’ buses. And injuries are quite common because we don’t have proper gym equipment. Sometimes, we even train on cement floors. The field is worse because it’s dirty and slippery! That’s why we’re gonna buy new mats with the CHEER grant.”
Emma Xin Li Maxim-Maddock, 16, captain of Blitzerz, SMK Bandar Utama Damansara (4). RAYMOND OOI/ The Star
“Some of the older members dropped out because of SPM. And cheerleading isn’t cheap. So hopefully with this grant, the new members will be motivated. We’ll probably enrol them in tumbling classes because it’s gonna take a long time to get it right. And since the fees are mostly paid by our parents, the grant will definitely help with the coaching fees of RM120 per cheerleader and uniforms that come up to about RM600.”
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