When junior MKilar Otte was cut from the Kennedy Middle School cheer squad in sixth grade, he never thought he’d be taking over the high school cheer scene. He practiced multiple hours every day and in eighth grade he finally got his big break as one of the captains of the squad. In Otte’s freshman year he became JV captain on the squad, and is now looking at varsity captain for next year.

1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a cheerleader?

“Sixth grade.”

2. Why did you want to be?

“I was a tumbler and it looked really cool so I just figured why not.”

3. When’d you first get started?

“I first got started in eighth grade cheering at Hays Middle School.”

4. Have you ever been discriminated against by being a boy in a female dominated sport?

“Not really. Boys are kind of praised in this sport at the high school level, especially if you can tumble, get big body-wise, can partner stunt and do everything just as well as the girls.”

5. Do you plan on continuing cheer in college? 

“Yes, absolutely. I’m going to try out at University of Kansas, Pittsburgh state, Wichita State and others to be decided. I have a couple of places trying to recruit me right now but I’m just not sure about those.”

6. What’s your end goal with cheerleading? 

“I want to be a Universal Cheerleaders Association or National Cheerleaders Association cheerleader. They are the cheerleaders who teach cheer camps and host competitions. The idea of owning a gym or working at one has always been in the back of my mind, too, and I have seriously thought about it.”

7. What do you plan on going to college for on the side?

“I’m going to major in biology then go on to medical school.”

8. What’s your end goal for the future in general?

“Either owning a cheer gym and coaching, then just cheering for as long as possible, or going to medical school and eventually becoming a pediatric surgeon.”

9. What other activities do you do on the side of cheerleading?

“Not much, cheer takes most of my time. Gymnastics, but that’s just kind of an extension to cheer.”

10. What’s the single best lesson you’ve learned from the sport?

“You can cry, you can puke, you can bleed but no matter what you keep going.”

11. What’s one thing you want everyone to know about the sport and the athletes involved?

“Cheer is hard. It kills your body. It’s work. It’s brain power. There is so much precision that goes into every stunt, every skill and every dance.”

12. Is it hard to balance everything on a day to day basis?

“Sometimes during basketball season it gets hard but usually it is okay in the end.”

13. How has it shaped who you are?

“Honestly, cheer is the reason I am the person I am. It’s the reason I’m confident, in shape,  disciplined and structured.”

17mcrees@usd489.com