St John's cheerleaders refuse to perform at game after school fails to recognize them on Women in Sports Day

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Ryan Morik | Fox News




In an Instagram post for National Girls and Women in Sports Day on Wednesday, the St. John's University athletics account neglected to recognize both the cheer and dance teams.

The school lists nine women's sports on its official website, all of which were included in the post – cheer and dance are not listed as women's sports.

In response to being excluded from recognition, cheerleaders did not perform during Wednesday's game against Seton Hall and wore shirts that read "WE ARE WOMEN IN SPORTS."

The university called it an "inadvertent omission" and is working with the squads to move forward.

"There was an inadvertent omission in a social media post from the Athletic Department celebrating ‘Women in Sports’ that failed to tag or depict our cheerleaders and dance team," the school said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "The cheerleaders expressed disappointment with this perceived slight and are now engaged in an active dialogue with the Athletic Department to move forward. St. John’s University values the active and dedicated contributions made by all our students especially our student-athletes."

The official Instagram account of the cheerleading squad posted the following:

"National Women In Sports Day is defined as: a day of observance held to acknowledge the accomplishments of female athletes, recognize the influence of sports participation for women, and honor the progress and continuing struggle for equality for women in sports. Not only today, but everyday, it is important that ALL women athletes are recognized for their hard work, dedication, and strength. We are so proud of all of the women student athletes of St. John’s Cheer today and everyday!"



Allison McCann, a cheerleader for the Red Storm, also took to Instagram to celebrate her teammates after the omission from the school.

"Taking today to wish this team a National Women in Sports Day. A day to acknowledge the accomplishments of female athletes and recognize them for all their hard work," she wrote. "Even through constant neglect, this team does not remain silent. I could not be more proud of this group of athletes for standing up for what we believe is right …"

"The passion each individual has for this sport should not go unnoticed. When given less, we strive for more. We deserve recognition just the same as every other ATHLETE. GIVE CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE."

Cheerleading coach Carolyn Renda and dance team coach Christine McCarton did not reply to requests for comment from Fox News Digital.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

So.....cheerleading. A sport or not? Or in another way of looking at it, are cheerleaders athletes?

[DemonGeminiX]

So.....cheerleading. A sport or not? Or in another way of looking at it, are cheerleaders athletes?

It depends. I think collegiate cheerleading squads at major universities are pretty hardcore, as are professional sports' squads. High school and smaller colleges are debatable. The high school squads that compete in competitions are usually pretty damn athletic. I've known cheerleaders that were in better shape than most male athletes, and then there were those that were complete jokes, scraping from the bottom of the barrel 'cause no one else would do it.

[deebakes]

the cheer squad practices pretty hard at university... i would call it a sport if golf qualifies

[Pony]

If Beer Pong is a sport, I think Cheerleading definitely qualifies.

[deebakes]

or cornhole for that matter

[Godfather]

It depends. I think collegiate cheerleading squads at major universities are pretty hardcore, as are professional sports' squads. High school and smaller colleges are debatable. The high school squads that compete in competitions are usually pretty damn athletic. I've known cheerleaders that were in better shape than most male athletes, and then there were those that were complete jokes, scraping from the bottom of the barrel 'cause no one else would do it.

That was my thinking too. The cheerleaders at sports games I've seen just do some dances for the crowd, but I've seen my wife watching the competition shows and they are legit athletes, the men and women doing that stuff are pound for pound as strong or stronger than many other athletes. I noticed the article mentions a cheer team and a dance team. I'd say recognize the dance team presuming they're the ones risking their lives with these acrobatics while the dance team just shakes their pompoms. The dance team? I dono, seems like that's more part of the arts program

[PorkChopSandwiches]

My daughter was in cheer from like 5 yo into high school. They are 100% athletes. They train hard

[deebakes]

My daughter was in cheer from like 5 yo into high school. They are 100% athletes. They train hard

yeah they do

[Godfather]

My daughter was in cheer from like 5 yo into high school. They are 100% athletes. They train hard

Coworker of mine with two boys and two girls said the Cheer programs at the elite level get even more expensive than putting her boys through hockey programs I never would've guessed, hockey is crazy expensive.