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🏴 My adventure as a judge in Scotland (S4.2)
Episode of September 8, 2026
Even with years of experience as a cheerleading judge, sometimes a single detail, or rather a few missing pieces of information, is enough to completely destabilize a day of competition.
In this episode of the Kick's Cheer Podcast, Janie looks back on her adventure in Scotland. A trip that was supposed to be another great international experience turned into a real test of adaptation!
🌍 Judging cheerleading internationally
Judging a competition is not simply a matter of arriving, sitting down, and assigning points. Before each event, judges must know the levels, the schedule, the criteria used, and above all… the scoring system.
Before leaving for Scotland, Janie repeatedly asked for the information she needed to prepare. But it was slow in coming.
Once there, she finally discovers that she will be judging the difficulty of the tumblings. So far, no problem.
The real problem arises on the morning of the competition.
😳 A Scottish judging system!
Upon opening the scoring system a few minutes before the start of the competition, Janie realizes that she will not be working with the comparative system she is used to, but with a rubric system.
It's a system she's familiar with, but hasn't used since 2020.
She prepares quickly and begins judging. After about ten teams, something is wrong: her scoring system isn't working.
For what ?
Because the organization uses a rubric grid specific to Scotland, information it had never received.
It is then necessary to continue to judge the new teams while going back into previous performances to correct the scores.
💪 A cheerleading judge's experience makes all the difference
It is precisely in this kind of situation that experience becomes so important.
Thanks to her detailed notes and years of experience as a cheerleading judge, Janie was able to review previous performances, adjust her scores, and continue the competition. In the end, the athletes achieved the results they were meant to achieve.
But internally, the day is much more difficult.
When you are used to feeling competent and in control in your field, suddenly finding yourself doubting your work directly hits your professional ego.
And that's also what makes this story interesting: even experienced professionals can be thrown off balance when they don't have all the information they need to do their job.
🎯 Preparation is part of performance
This adventure also highlights something that is not always seen behind a cheerleading competition.
Judges, hosts, event producers, and other professionals cannot simply arrive on the morning of the event and improvise. Their work begins well before the event.
Good preparation allows everyone to be at their best, just like a cheerleading squad preparing before stepping onto the pole.
And when working internationally, this communication becomes even more important since methods, systems and ways of working can change from one country to another.
🎧 Listen to episode S4.2 of the Kick's Cheer Podcast
Today, Janie can laugh about her adventure in Scotland. At the time? Much less so!
In this episode, Janie, Nadia, and Keaven discuss this experience candidly, the importance of preparation, the differences between judging systems, and the sometimes completely unforeseen situations that arise when working in the world of cheerleading.
One thing is certain: experience helps enormously… but it never replaces good communication!
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