Sports star award for cheer champ

CHEERLEADER Maddy Theobald has been named the Bendigo Sports Star for the month of October.

The 24-year-old started her career training in Bendigo 14 years ago and has been travelling to Melbourne since she turned 18 to compete at a higher level.

“I feel really honoured to be chosen for this award, it’s something that’s very close to my heart being a Bendigo local, so I’m very grateful,” she said.

The cheer star competes with Southern Cross Cheer team Lady Reign, based in Northcote, where she travels to train three times a week.

In 2017 she competed in her first International All Star Federation World Cheer Championships.

In September this year her hard work paid off, when her team performed a flawless routine and was crowned world champions for the first time.

“In 2021 the travel restrictions were still in place for most countries, so they decided to do it virtually for the first time,” she said.

“About two weeks later they streamed all of our routines live to the world and we found out we won.

“It definitely felt worth it, the late nights of training and everything.”

Last weekend, Theobald competed with her team in the Australian All Star Cheerleading Federation nationals, placing second and successfully bidding for next year’s world championships, which will hopefully be held in Florida in April.

Also the coach of Melbourne University’s cheer team, Theobald said she’d love to go back to the world championships for a fourth time, and help her team defend their title.

“I’ve definitely achieved my lifelong dream which was not only compete at the world championships but win a world championships title, that is the pinnacle of cheerleading and what I always wanted to do,” she said.

“I do want to go back over and do it one more time in person because that would add so much more to that win, then I’ll start thinking about hanging up the cheer shoes.”