CheerTravelUK | Top tips for attending Worlds
Before you go...
Make sure you have completed your ESTA! And don’t get caught out on the wrong site… ~ USA Travel Advice GOV.uk > entry requirements > ESTA link > https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/ ~ You MUST complete this at least 72 hours before your flights (however the earlier the better!). This is no longer an instant application, it can take now between 24-48 hours to confirm.
Travel Insurance. Ensure it covers you for whatever you are intending to do. If you will be competing (or stunting/tumbling as a spectator) you must have insurance that covers cheerleading. The average travel insurance claim for medical treatment in the US is approximately £6200! And if you need surgery for a broken leg, you could be looking at between $17,000-35,000! Without travel insurance covering cheerleading (or possibly gymnastics) you would not be covered if it was obtained through stunting/tumbling… that’s one expensive trip to the hospital!
Now for the more exciting stuff – England flags! We’re proud to have one of the best crowds in the arena at ICU! England flags, face-paint, T-shirts, pins… get ready to be shouting ‘Let’s go England… red and white!’ After ICU, you can also trade your flags and T-shirts etc. with other countries - what a great way to build friendships in the international cheerleading community!
Cooling spray… not a necessity but the gyms can get very hot! If you are training in Orlando, invest in a cooling spray to regenerate between full outs! ‘Magicool’ is £7 from Amazon but there’s cheaper versions available from Boots, Superdrug etc.
Take a lightweight waterproof. It will rain. It will still be warm. It will probably last 10 minutes and then be brilliant sun again...
Sun cream! Goes without saying, you’re going to Florida. Make sure to buy a waterproof sun cream if you’re visiting any of the waterparks during your stay. There’s nothing worse than training/competing with sunburn - trust me!
When you’re there...
Jet lag - you are travelling across multiple time zones, jet lag is inevitable. My biggest tip for avoiding jet lag is as soon as you get on the plane - set your phone/watch for the time it is where you are landing (so 5 hours earlier for Florida). This will help you to adjust to the time zone a little earlier! I find that jet lag travelling west (UK > Florida) isn’t too bad, but I personally always struggle on the return. If you can take a few days to rest after returning to the UK, I highly recommend!
Sleep is very important during your run up to Worlds! Whilst the whole trip is very exciting, make sure you are getting enough sleep to avoid burning out.
Eat properly and drink lots of water! Another obvious one, but the huge variety and portion sizes in Florida are very tempting… don’t get me wrong, make the most of this and try all the new foods that you can, but make sure you are getting your key nutrition in. There’s plenty of online research about how to fuel your body leading up to a competition, I highly recommend some research if you haven’t already looked.
Stretch - there are huge physiological benefits to taking some time to stretch your muscles, especially after a day of training/competing. Team yoga in the villa anyone?
Theme park tips… visiting Universal? Get there early and head straight to the ride you want to go to. It will be the quietest point in the day. I always make a beeline for the Harry Potter rides as I know they will be some of the busiest later!
Take lots of pictures - you might only be at Worlds once; you will almost certainly only be at Worlds once with those athletes in your team. And you have 52 weeks’ worth of #worldswednesday hashtags to fill!
Attend everything that you can - show offs, ICU, finals, Disney fireworks etc. Take everything in!
Support the other UK teams. I hope this goes without saying. Whether they’re in your division or not, every athlete has worked incredibly hard to be on that Worlds floor! You never know, they could be your teammate someday. Support each other and do the UK cheerleading community proud!
Learn! You are surrounded by the best athletes and coaches in the industry. Take every opportunity to learn and soak up as much knowledge as possible. Taken from the words of Gold medallist Team USA athlete Tucker Hunter - ‘there is always more to learn and room for improvement’.
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Thank you for reading our Worlds tips! We hope that some of them are helpful for your time in Florida.
Finally, good luck to every athlete taking to the Worlds stage this month. Remember to breathe, encourage each other, and perform! We look forward to supporting you all!
#letsgoengland