A CORNISH cheerleader is gearing up for the biggest moment of her sporting career after earning a coveted place on Team England, who will compete at the 2026 ICU World Cheerleading Championships in Orlando, Florida.

The event, running from April 22 to 24, will see England defend their Adaptive Abilities Advanced world title, aiming for a spectacular back-to-back victory.

For Sydnee Marsh, a 25-year-old sales executive at Hawkins Motors, the achievement marks the culmination of a lifelong passion.

“I’ve been a cheerleader since I was 11,” she said. “I started when I lived in Ludlow in Shropshire, and when I moved down here, I joined the club down here. This year I tried out for Team England – and I made the team.”

Sydnee, who lives in the village of Ley, near St Neot, trains with Chaos Cheerleading, one of the South West’s competitive all-star cheer programmes based in Plymouth. All-star cheer focuses on choreographed competitive routines featuring high-energy stunts, tumbling and dance rather than the traditional pom-pom style.

“The cheerleading I do is all-star cheerleading,” she said. “We basically compete, we don’t do the sideline cheerleading. There’s a lot of stunting, which is basically throwing people in the air. There’s tumbling, jumps and all sorts of choreography.”

Her Plymouth team competes nationally, with their biggest UK event being held in Bournemouth, and they are set to travel to Amsterdam for an international competition next year.

Cheerleading has been a natural progression for Sydnee since her early dance years.

“I started doing dance, and my dance teacher went into cheerleading,” she recalled. “I’d been dancing with her since I was about four, so when she started something new, I wanted to give it a go. It just blossomed from there.”

Earning a spot on Team England required grit, skill and considerable patience. “I did the try-out at the end of August, and it took nearly a week and a half to get the result,” she said. “I didn’t sleep – it was horrible! When the email finally came, I thought they’d sent it to the wrong person. It still doesn’t feel real.”

Training with the national squad means Sydnee now travels to Bristol twice a month, joining a group of athletes drawn from across the country.

“On the mat there are around 25 of us, but the full squad is 30 because we need reserves,” she said. “I think I’m the only one from Cornwall. The closest to me is a girl from Okehampton, everyone else is from places like Bristol, London or Milton Keynes.”

Sydnee, who also helps coach youngsters at her club, is now appealing to local people and businesses to help support her journey to the USA through sponsorship.

She and her team-mates are seeking funding to assist with the substantial costs of training, specialised equipment, clothing, trainers and entry fees. Any contribution would ease the financial pressure and allow the athletes to focus on what they do best – competing at the highest level.

If anyone can help, email Sydnee at [email protected]