Please note that this article heavily relates to Infinity Athletics CheerSPORT Teams.

First competitions can be daunting as a parent or athlete. But if you are prepared and follow all of the advice in this guide, it should make your day a lot less stressful.

The absolute best thing you can do is to read through the Competition Info Package that your gym will send you a couple weeks prior to the competition, to ensure you are well informed and know what your gym would like you to do.

SCHEDULE

It is typical to only receive the final schedule a week or two before hand, but usually your gym will provide a draft day and approximate time of day a couple weeks prior, but this can also change.

PREPARING FOR YOUR DAY

The day usually starts off with getting ready. Be sure to have all of your stuff prepared the night before to make sure you’re not missing anything. We also recommend going over your routine a couple times to make sure you know it. Everything in the list below needs to be out and ready the night before.

It is really important that parents and athletes try their best to set the mood for the day as a good one. Hair and make-up can be stressful, but if we start the day with negativity we are setting up our athletes to start their day on the wrong foot which is not what we need to ensure success. Be sure to leave plenty of time for hair and make-up, and even enough time for both parties to cool off if something is getting too much.

It is really important that the athletes fuel their bodies right to prepare for a really great day! Be sure to have a healthy, energy-filled breakfast. Don’t forget breakfast! There is nothing worse than a hangry athlete at competition hehe! Mood and energy is everything at competition!

Triple check you have these Items 1 Week Prior to First Competition:

Uniform
Shoes
Hair & Make Up Instructions + all make up, bobby pins, hair ties, hair spray that you need.
Bow
Correct colour and type of socks

Infinity Members can find all Costume, Hair, and Makeup Instructions and details in the Performance Outfit Guide under the guides tab on the Members Dashboard - link pinned to the top of BAND App under notices].

TURNING UP TO COMPETITION

It is really important that you turn up to the competition ready to compete and on time at your Meet Time with all hair and make up done, Uniform on, and all jewelry out. Teams will get deductions if judges see any jewelry on stage as it is a hazard, this is, unfortunately, a strict rule with no leniency. Meet Times are usually sent out with the Competition Information Pack via email.

Parking is also usually quite tricky and very busy, we recommend leaving ample time for parking. Definitely leave extra early as competitions do not wait for anyone, if you are late you will miss out. Being early is a must.

We always recommend if you are often someone that runs a little late, to tell yourself you need to be there 30mins before you need to be to allow for you to run late if things happen, and not actually be late.

What to pack in your Cheer Bag the day of competition:

Extra bobby pins & hair ties + Hair spray
Water
Snacks if you are there a while
Activities to do if you have a large gap between performing and awards
Spare make up for touch ups (parents should hold onto this where possible).
Team Jumper if it’s cold
Athsma puffers or medication you may require

ONCE YOU HAVE ARRIVED

When you arrive you will meet your coach or a gym staff member at the meet time typically somewhere outside as specified in the information your gym would have emailed you (Competition Specific, Information Pack for Infinity Members).

Shortly after, you will say goodbye to parents and your coach will take you to go over your routine and have a team chat before heading in. As much as we love having parents support their athletes, it is really important that the athletes are strictly left with their team so they can focus and get into comp mode without distractions. Sometimes due to weather or time restrictions, we may not get this extra time outside and may have to go straight into warm-ups.

Once athletes have been dropped off, parents will usually go off together and sit as a group in the stands ready to support the team.

WARM UPS

Each team is allocated a warm up time to warm up their routines and bodies promptly before competing with their coach. They will go into a large basketball area with mats out where there are usually multiple other teams in the room practicing as well. The warm up room can get quite noisy so it is really important that everyone has their listening ears on. Each team works through different stations aimed at different skills or parts of the routine, warm ups takes about 20mins.

AFTER WARM UPS

Straight after warm ups the team will head straight backstage ready to go on. We usually use this short time to hype the athletes up with a lot of positive team chats to get the nerves out.

***Don’t forget to SMILE for the camera!***

THE PERFORMANCE

Once you try it, you’ll be hooked. There is no better feeling than going out and doing your absolute best with your teammates by your side, while also bringing out your inner Sass queen and having all your fans and coaches cheering you on. Performing is just the most amazing experience!

For CheerSPORT Competitions the coaches are near the front of the floor, but the music is quite loud so you can see them but can’t hear them. It is super important that the athletes performing are counting out loud as a team so they know they are going on the right counts as the coaches can’t count for them.

The parents during this time will usually remain in the stands cheering for the team. Usually, we clap, cheer and get excited when they “hit” their stunts. Hit meaning when they do it and it looks correct without falling. We also clap in time with the music for the end dance to show our support and enthusiasm for the team. It is also encouraged to do this for all teams and gyms.

We also have a fans area where any supporting athletes can come and sit behind the coaches and cheer the team on with them while they perform. We absolutely love having the extra support so if you are able to stay and watch our other teams we would love for your athlete to come and sit with coaches to show their support.

AWARDS

The final part of your competition day! It is important to remember that having the best day ever is at the top of the agenda and that so many other teams in your division probably did amazing as well! As much as we love winning, it is important to remind your athlete that the most important thing is that they did their absolute best on the floor and had a great time with their team. We always remind our athletes that winning is super awesome and fun, but if we don’t win, it just means that we need to get back in the gym ready to work extra hard to give it another try next time!

Awards are called out in their divisions usually from 3rd Place to 1st, and yes! Athletes do have to stay for awards.

INFINITY ATHLETICS SPECIFIC DETAILS

Be sure to keep an eye out for the Competition Specific Information Package that will be sent out approx. one to two weeks prior to the competitions with final competition details. All currently available details can be found in the BAND App Event and as more details become available they will also be uploaded to the BAND Event, including the Competition Specific Information Package.

If you have any questions that cannot be answered by the information provided in the BAND App Event, Performance Outfit Guide or Infinity Athletics 2022 Information Package, please send us an email well before the event. The week of comp is a very busy time, so questions at this time are very tricky to get back to. Questions on competition day should be limited but if required, please ask on the BAND App Group Chat.

Be sure to be organised to ensure a smooth and stress free day!

I hope you have the best day ever at your first competition and feel a little more prepared!