A boost for Malaysian cheerleading
U Mobile and Clean & Clear did some cheerleading of their own by supporting CHEER 2015.
THE Malaysian cheerleading scene has grown bigger and better every year since CHEER started it all in 2000, but none of it would’ve been possible without the wonderful brands that support CHEER every year.
This year, CHEER saw an incredible 39 secondary school cheerleading teams performing at the Finals in front of 8,000 spectators. The videos on the CHEER website ( rage. com. my/ CHEER) had almost 150,000 views just two days after the event!
It was all thanks to CHEER 2015 co- sponsor U Mobile and official skincare partner Clean & Clear.
“We decided to partner with CHEER again because we like how cheerleading builds creativity, teamwork and trust amongst its members,” said U Mobile head of marketing communication, brand and digital Jeannette Lee.
“Watching the cheerleaders’ passion and the hard work that goes into choreographing an entire routine inspired us to take part in CHEER 2015, and we hope to continue into CHEER 2016 as well!”
This year, U Mobile decided to support both the cheerleaders and their supporters as well, by sponsoring the U Mobile Best Supporter Award, which went to SMK Damansara Jaya.
Low Su Yi, 17, leader of the school’s Dynamick supporters’ association, said: “We didn’t expect to win the award, but it has really inspired us to keep cheering for both our team as well as all the others.”
The Dynamicks held practices ahead of CHEER 2015 to work on their chants, props and banners, and Low said the award has motivated them to work even harder to support their school’s teams – the Dynamitez, Mickeymitez and Minimitez.
Lee said that’s exactly the kind of positive spirit U Mobile wanted to encourage through the Best Supporter Award.
“While the core cheerleaders are the ‘ stars’ of the show, the supporters help provide motivation, spirit and drive to the team. In the end, everybody is part of one big team regardless of whether you’re a cheerleader or just a team member who made a sign, or cheered along and clapped for your team,” said Lee.
Clean & Clear also sponsored an important prize – the Best Showmanship Award, which focuses on style, presentation and energy.
“The Best Showmanship award was a great platform for us to encourage cheerleaders to express themselves,” said Clean & Clear group brand manager June Yap, adding that it was an inspiration to see how teenagers are willing to go the extra mile to hone their cheerleading skills.
The award went to the Vulcanz All- Girls team for their highly entertaining routine.
Captain Ariel Yew, 17, said: “We’re so thankful to Clean & Clear for this! We’re so much more motivated to do well in CHEER 2016 now.”
Yap had kind words for the team as well: “Their enthusiasm and passion for the sport has given us more reason to look into partnership opportunities for CHEER 2016!”
Thanks to the support of U Mobile and Clean & Clear, the event in general was a huge success as well, with guest of honour deputy education minister P. Kamalanathan clearly impressed by what he saw.
During his speech to the crowd, he said: “I finally know what ‘ CHEER’ stands for – CH is for ‘ champion’, E is for ‘ electrifying’, the other E is for ‘ energetic’ and R is for ... ‘ you rock’!”