Ascension Eagles Cheerleaders (AEC) achieved their bid to compete at the 2008 Cheerleading World Championships by winning FutureCheer Nationals in July 2007. One of the first teams worldwide to win a 2008 bid, Ascension Eagles then embarked on a journey to equip and prepare 24 of their 100 members to represent the UK's 15,000 cheerleaders on the world stage.
Only the top one per cent of teams worldwide receive a bid to compete at Worlds; for Newham's Ascension Eagles, the invitation alone represents just how much this East End outreach project has achieved. Recognising this significant accomplishment, Development Securities and the Jack Petchey Foundation, along with a private foundation, helped the team meet the financial requirements for participating at Worlds.
After months of preparation, and nearly two weeks in the States, AEC's 2008 World Tour is over. The team brought two new trophies back to the UK - one to represent their ranking within their Small International Coed division, and the other to represent their status in the overall world of cheer.
In their division - which started with 29 teams in Pre-lims and narrowed to 16 teams advancing to Finals -- they placed 6th, just .38 (one-third of a point) away from 5th place, and seven points from 3rd. USA teams captured the top three places, with Canada securing 4th and 5th place. This makes Ascension Eagles the best Coed team outside of North America, a tremendous accomplishment as competition within the division was intense with outstanding teams from numerous South American countries, as well as from Europe, China and even Jamaica.
