Cheer Factor All Stars, a highly selective club cheerleading team, won the Battle at The Boardwalk Nationals in Atlantic City, N.J. on Feb. 6, and received a full paid invitation to the 2016 Cheerleading Worlds Championship April 23 through 25. Members of this elite team junior Chloe O’Hara and freshman Gabby O’Hara have cheered for it for the past two years. The two also cheer as members of Walpole High School’s varsity cheer team.
The selection process for the World Championship is very exclusive. Many teams are invited, but few receive a full scholarship because of success in an earlier competition. This is only the second time the girls’ club program has received this scholarship since opening ten years ago. The World Championship will be held at Disney World, Florida, and will be broadcasted live on ESPN.
Chloe said, “I am both excited and nervous; knowing that this is the biggest competition with people from all over the world makes me nervous; however, it is in Disney and I am so excited for the experience with my teammates who are also some of my closest friends.”
As the younger sister, Gabby is relieved she can go through all of this with her sister as a great aide of support.
“I am so excited to have made it this far with my team and most of that allots to having my older sister always by my side,” said Gabby.
Cheer has helped the sisters bond with one another, and their compatibility is evident to Walpole varsity cheerleading coach Elizabeth Udahl.
“These two have been inseparable over the last few years, and cheer allots to that,¨ Udahl said.
Udahl enjoys coaching the two sisters and said their presence positively impacts the whole team. In her first year as coach, she learned to appreciate how Chloe and Gabby’s relationship and work ethic helps the team.
“They are hardworking, dedicated girls who are there for one another in all that they do,” she said. “It is evident that the support that they show for one another spills over and throughout the team. Having positive athletes and young women like them is something that every coach loves having.”
Chloe began cheering her sophomore year and has been on varsity since she started. She tumbles, jumps and is a back spot for stunting groups. As a back spot, she is in control of the whole stunt group because she ensures the safety of the flyer. Her younger sister, Gabby, is a starting flyer and earned this position as a freshman. She also tumbles and jumps along with Chloe.
Because it is mandatory that they attend every club competition, Chloe and Gabby are limited to cheering in the fall for Walpole, then the rest of the year they cheer for their club team.
Located in Hanover, the Cheer Factor All-Stars has been a major part of the girls’ lives for the past two years. Practices take place almost every weekend beginning in January. The following months, the team begins to travel for competitions.
The club team travels extensively to reach their competitions. Over the past season, they have competed in New Jersey, Texas and Florida.
The upcoming Worlds event will be the first for the sisters during their cheerleading career.