CIF Cheer Championships Postpones Amid COVID-19 Surge

LOS ANGELES, CA — CIF Southern Section on Wednesday postponed Saturday's Traditional Competitive Cheer Championships after about 30 percent of the squads had to withdraw due to the coronavirus. It's a problem that has been plaguing high school and college athletic programs since mid-December.

The championships, which were slated to take place at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, have been tentatively rescheduled for Feb. 5, according to CIF Southern Section Commissioner of Athletics Rob Wigod.

By Tuesday afternoon, 30% of the 101 teams originally registered for the event had already withdrawn due to COVID issues within their programs, Wigod said. He anticipated more cancelations as outbreaks spread amid the worst surge in cases to hit Southern California since the start of the pandemic.

"In addition, we expect that there will be others that will have to withdraw in the next few days, further affecting our ability to conduct this championship event on Saturday at the highest level that it deserves," Wigod said in a statement.

CIF Southern Section officials said individuals programs will make the determination of whether their teams can compete under current COVID conditions.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.