Regina cheer team wins world title

The best cheerleaders in the world live right here in Saskatchewan.

Regina’s Rebel Cheerleading Athletics cheer team, Smoke, took the title at the Cheerleading Worlds in Orlando, Fla. on Monday.

Shortly after the team won, coach and owner Eric Bestvater joined 980 CJME for an interview.

“It is amazing. It feels like a dream right now, that’s for sure,” he said breathlessly.

This is the first time a team from Saskatchewan has ever won the world title.

“It’s the culmination of over 15 years of work from these athletes, generation after generation of this team just getting better and better every year. This year, we had that group of girls (who) just had that magic. They just really got it done,” he said.

However, it wasn’t easy, and the team didn’t feel too confident after its performance.

“We had not a perfect run … so we were nervous. We didn’t know how it was going to go,” Bestvater said.

“We won by half a point out of 150 points. That’s about how close it was. So, sitting on that mat … my assistant coach Becky was just sobbing on my shoulder … We got down to the last two teams, and when they announced us, I almost fainted. (It was) too good to be true.”

Kelly Remple’s daughter, Ainsley, is on the team.

She told him it was a nerve-racking experience.

“It’s hard to say whether they really, truly, honestly believed yesterday that they were going to win. They did have a fall … Generally, in Canada, when you’re going through one of your routines and somebody falls or there’s a slip, it’s not smooth as silk, the Canadian judges are pretty hard … But down there, it’s a little different, apparently,” Rempel explained.

“Their routine was so much more difficult than everybody else’s routine, that … what they got deducted for having the small slip, they made up for … But they’re not used to that.”

But now, there’s no need to worry. They can bask in the knowledge that they’re the best in the world.

“When she called me after winning, she was so emotional she couldn’t spit out the words. There were so many emotions going through her mind,” Rempel recalled.

“They work so hard. Man, do they put in a lot of time, those kids.”

Like Rempel, Bestvater couldn’t be more proud of the team.

“These girls have really overcome so much. Not just COVID-19, but with all of the shutdowns and having to train with eight kids (at a time) in the gym when we have 24 on the team, it’s just not possible. With injuries, we’ve never competed this routine except for this weekend with the same group of athletes,” said.

“These girls have overcome so many obstacles to be where they are, and I’m so proud of them.”