Keanan Harmse
A team of cheerleaders from Kommetjie were crowned as the second best cheerleading squad during the Western Province Majorettes and Cheerleading Association’s (WPMCA) annual prizegiving held at Fish Hoek High School on Saturday 7 June.
The cheerleaders, dubbed the Generation Griffins, walked away with silver at the WPMCA’s Western Province Championships which feature the best cheerleading squads across the province.
The WPMCA was established in 1981 and is affiliated to the South African Majorettes and Cheerleading Association (SAMCA).
The Griffins represent both Generation Schools Imhoff as well as a cheerleading club in Sunnydale, Cheer & Tumbling Stars (CTS).
“The competition showcased talent from primary schools, high schools, and tertiary institutions — with outstanding performances across every level,” said CTS coach, Samantha Higgins.
People’s Post spoke with a pair of cheerleaders, Ruby Farquar and Addison-Jane Barker-Goldie, who helped their team secure the accolade during this year’s season.
Farquar (Grade 9) and Goldie (Grade 7) both attend Generation Schools Imhoff.
Farquar says she also enjoys horse-riding and swimming when she’s not tumbling in the air.
“I am the first one in my family to practise cheerleading. One of my friends introduced me to cheerleading.
“We really enjoyed it and then the coach, Higgins, asked if we wanted to try out for the SA team,” she shares.
The Griffins practise on Mondays for an hour but to prepare for the national competitions they rehearsed every weekend.
“We’d train for four hours per day all across Cape Town so that all team members could attend. So far the highlight of my cheerleading career was going to Orlando, Florida, to compete in the World Championships. We came fourth in the world,” she adds.
Goldie says she loves tumbling and shares this passion with her two sisters.
“I saw cheerleading on TV and the next day I saw it was at our school and joined the team. We also train for 90 minutes every Friday with the Griffins team and we have been competing most Saturdays for the season, which has just finished in time for nationals in the school holidays,” she explains.
Goldie’s role in the team is as a flyer where she is instructed to complete acrobatic flips.
“It is such fun for me to do all the tricks – it can be scary but is exciting once I have learnt them and feel confident. So far my best achievement was competing in Florida with the SA Youth Co-ed Team. Anyone can do cheerleading as there are different roles depending on your body type and your skills,” Goldie said.
The Griffins also achieved fourth place overall as the best cheerleading high school during the WPMCA’s prizegiving, added coach, Higgins.
School principal Brett Garner says he is beaming with pride for their cheerleading teams.
“The Imhoff community is very proud of the exceptional achievements of the members of our cheerleading teams.
“Cheerleading and tumbling were introduced to allow (learners) of every age to engage in a fun but physically challenging activity. The fact that we now have (learners) who have represented our country on an international stage as Proteas is astounding. Farquar and Goldie’s hard work reflects the effort of every member of the cheerleading and tumbling fraternity, and we celebrate their achievements,” Garner said.
