Rosewood cheerleader to go to Pro Bowl
By News-Argus Staff
Published in News on February 1, 2004 2:02 AM
Olivia Neal of the Rosewood community is on her way to perform at the National Football League Pro Bowl game at the Aloha Stadium in Honolulu.
The game will be broadcast at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8, on ESPN.
The daughter of Don and Joann Neal of the Rosewood community was invited to participate in the 2004 National Scholarship Invitational and Pro Bowl Performance Tour while attending a cheerleading camp this summer. The camp was held at Peace College in Raleigh, and the performance tour is being sponsored by All American Cheer and Dance.
A video showing the selection she and cheerleaders from across the country will perform was mailed to her about a month ago, and she has been practicing.
Once in Honolulu, Olivia will practice with the other cheerleaders and have time to tour the Pearl Harbor museum and visit the beach.
On Tuesday, she will participate in a competition that incorporates 45 seconds of cheering and 45 seconds of dance and gymnastics.
Olivia has about five years of experience in gymnastics and has been working with a coach, Margaret Morgan with Morgan's Gymnastics in Smithfield, since the end of July.
Ms. Morgan assisted Olivia in creating the routine she will use in competition. She plans to wear her Rosewood Middle School cheerleading outfit during the competition and will be provided with a costume for the half-time show.
Olivia is in the eighth grade. This is her first year as a cheerleader.