If you find yourself at a Wisconsin high school sporting event in the near future, you're probably going to notice something missing. You'll no longer be hearing those fun "air ball" or "scoreboard" chants and cheers from the student section, as they've been banned by the governing body of Wisconsin high school athletics.
It's all part of a decision made this past December by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association in an attempt to refocus efforts on sportsmanship. Read the full pamphlet of changes here.
Among the cheers and chants no longer allowed:
Take a look at #11 again. The WIAA is discouraging students from chanting "USA! USA!". Well, that didn't go over real well, and the WIAA had to put out some clarification yesterday.
Sidenote: I have never heard of the "USA" chant meaning anything other than "United States of America". First it was everyone gets a participation trophy...and now this? Can't the focus be shifted to something more productive and meaningful? I simply don't understand this at all. To protest, some students have showed up to sporting events with tape over their mouths in a silent demonstration against the new rules, and I applaud this move.
Here's to hoping that the NCAA doesn't see this directive and adopt it for college student sections.
I'm curious to hear where you stand on this issue.
Update>> It has come to my attention that "banned" may be a strong word, and perhaps "highly discouraged" is a better description of what the WIAA is doing here.