The Push To Be Perfect

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Cheerleading has changed a lot, at least in Texas. Once upon a time, the girls didn't have to do much besides jump and look cute. These days they do standing backflips and other moves that require a high degree of athleticism--and endless practice. "Cheerleading is one of the hardest things you can do," says Breanna Oviedo of Euless Junior High near Dallas. She should know, since she also plays basketball, soccer and softball and runs track. Her squad mate Monica Brigham, also a soccer player, shows off wrist injuries from lifting the lighter girls for stunts. "They sell a T shirt that says ATHLETES LIFT WEIGHTS, BUT CHEERLEADERS LIFT ATHLETES," she says proudly. The Euless squad practices four times a week, an hour and a half a night, with only Wednesday off for church. Every practice involves at least 100 crunches and "running lines" on a basketball court. "Sometimes they make you so mad," says Monica. If someone rolls her eyes, that adds a couple of laps of running. Drop a flyer while doing a stunt, and that's 25 push-ups.

The athletic demands have made cheerleading less of a haven for the In crowd and more of a meritocracy. "I don't care if it's the wallflower girl in the corner. If she can cheer, I want her on my squad," says Lisa O'Bryant, who supervises cheerleaders at St. Pius. O'Bryant has brought in independent judges so that tryouts don't devolve into popularity contests. "The majority of my girls are probably popular, but I also have a handful who don't say boo at school."

Some requirements for cheerleaders haven't changed. They are still expected to be well-turned-out fashion plates, hair pulled into a tight ponytail, uniform just so. Tans--from a bottle or a tanning salon--are a must. "The girls have to be picture perfect," says Euless cheer sponsor Kelli McDaniel. Monica's mom Daphne Brigham keeps a sharp eye on her daughter at the S.M.U. camp, monitoring her for slips.--and, naturally, finds one. "Didn't we talk about this?" she asks Monica, pulling her aside for a wayward bra strap. "If your top is pink, your bra can't be black or blue!" Monica is dismissive, laughing about fastidious friends who spend 20 minutes doing their hair, 30 minutes on makeup. Kelsie, however, says she watches not only her hair and makeup but also her junk-food intake. Sponsors say that gaining weight, especially during pizza pig-outs at overnight competitions, is a more common problem for 13-year-olds than eating disorders like bulimia, which can become a serious issue for cheerleaders in high school.

The price of perfection runs high in dollars too. Cheerleading clothes and camps typically cost about $1,000 a year. That's a problem in poorer schools like Euless. This year only 10 girls auditioned for 16 slots on the team. To ease the financial burden, the school decided to buy uniforms and lend them out. Many junior-high and middle schools, conscious of Texas' conservative values, impose a dress code for uniforms, requiring skirts that fall three inches below the fingertips and tops that cover the stomach and shoulders.