Yesterday was the UAAP Cheerdance Competition. My friend Anna Grace had two Patron seat tickets so she invited me to go and watch with her. It’s no surprise that she’s into that kind of competition since she’s a former member of the Artians Cheerdance Squad back in our college days. And I know just how much she loves dancing, cheerleading, and jazz ballet. I, on the other hand, am not particularly the dancer type. But I do love watching cheerdances.

Anna Grace and I, watching from a neutral point of view. :updown:

Although our tickets granted us seats in the middle of the UST crowd, we came to watch the competition as 100% impartial spectators (Okay — maybe not really 100%, heh). We could’ve chosen to root for DLSU with which our alma mater is somewhat affiliated, but really, we went there just to enjoy the event. And we really did!

After seeing all the cheerdance squads perform, there was no doubt in our minds that it was gonna be the UP Pep Squad who will win first place. Their routines are sharp and snappy. Their stunts and flyers, impressive. I also liked the unique way they styled their hair and uniform. Of course, the participation of the audience from their school contributed a lot to their victory. It does help to have plenty of active supporters to boost the cheerleaders’ confidence.

The wild UP crowd. (Click to enlarge).

The UST Salinggawi Dance Troupe came in second place, and the FEU Cheering Squad in third. Personally, I found the routine of the Ateneo Blue Babble Battalion clean and extraordinary too, but whatever — I’m not one of the judges anyway. lol. The UE Pep Squad is also not bad. The rest of the participants are the DLSU-, Adamson-, and NU- Pep Squads.

The Ateneo Blue Babble Battalion

The FEU Pep Squad

Here’s a video of UP Pep Squad’s cheerdance from my vantage point. The first 30 seconds are enough to blow one’s mind away.

It’s too bad Anna Grace and I didn’t belong to any of the universities that participated in UAAP. We would’ve loved to have cheered our hearts out for our own alma mater just as the students who went to Araneta Coliseum did. We can be die-hard fans too, you know. Haha. Oh well. It’s not like we didn’t have anything from our school that we’re proud of. As I’ve mentioned, Anna Grace used to be part of the Artians, the official cheerdance squad of our school’s College of Arts and Sciences. Their team has participated in a number of competitions and triumphed over local rivals. Even I (who belonged to the College of Business and Accountancy) think the Artians are worthy to compete nationally. The USLS Pep Squad didn’t (still doesn’t) stand a chance against them. lol.

Below is a video of Artians’ performance in the USLS Coliseum last January 2007. If your fond of cheerdancing, I promise you this one is also worth watching.