A perfect storm for a local athlete brings thunder onto the world stage

When Samia Davidson was nine years old, she was introduced to Sabres Cheer by a friend and encouraged to join the team. Though she was nervous, Davidson knew she was where she needed to be when she walked into the gym for the first time. Fast forward ten years and a change in teams; after moving to a city team once her talents required it, Davidson is still blowing her goals out the water.

Last month, Samia and her Perfect Storm Athletics (Thunder) teammates travelled to Florida to participate in the Cheerleading Worlds along with ten thousand other competitors scattered throughout various divisions. The event took place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disneyland, and Davidson said it was an amazing place to be. “It’s a massive sports complex. The first thing that everybody wants to see is the big ESPN globe that we always see on tv. It was the first thing we saw, and we took pictures in front of it,” she smiled.

“It’s just huge. There are three massive stadiums, six baseball fields, twelve football fields, and more. When we saw where we would be performing, it was amazing. There were lights on the stage, and it was lower, so you could see the stage and the background that said Worlds 2022. Every cheerleader’s goal is to get to worlds. That’s what I’ve worked for through ten years in the sport, being on that stage, on that floor, with my team.”

Davidson has competed in competitions throughout her time as a cheerleader, but she said that performing in front of such a massive audience wasn’t as scary as performing in front of a hometown crowd. “Competitions in Edmonton are honestly scarier because I have friends there on other teams, and my friends and family there watching. Whereas in Florida, for the Worlds, I honestly don’t even remember being on the floor. I had friends and family there watching me, but it was so big that I wasn’t focused on who was watching me. I was just focused on the team.”

Their first performance on April 24 was a blur for Davidson, who said that she doesn’t remember anything past walking out onto the stage. “I remember walking on, and I remember walking off. I don’t remember anything in between. We did good, but I don’t remember it,” she laughed. “It was just crazy to perform there!”

Her team’s division was International Open 6 Non-Tumbling Co-ed, and there were 65 teams within it. “We had the biggest division at Worlds. Most of them were USA teams, and then there were seven Canadian teams. The rest were from the UK and one from Germany.” The Canadian teams go from semifinals to finals meaning that her team had to place in the top three on day one to move to the finals on day two.

Perfect Storm Thunder didn’t hit the stage until 4 pm, and Davidson said waiting for results was pure torture. “We didn’t find out if we made it until midnight. I’ve never been out of bed faster than that moment,” she laughed. Davidson said that when they found out they had made it to finals, they screamed so loud that hotel security was called. “Ha-ha, we were so excited.”

The team had to be back, ready to compete, by 7 am, which made for very little sleep. “Our theme this year was Rock On, Thunder! Getting ready for finals, we play various rock songs to hype ourselves up, and we do the hokey pokey before we go on stage to get our nerves out.” Davidson said that watching the other team’s warmup was intimidating. “You see teams you look up to, and it’s crazy to see them right beside you.”

After two years off from COVID and not being able to train properly, Davidson said that it felt amazing to take the stage and perform in the finals. “We did a really good job on day two. We watched the video of ourselves performing, knowing that we had done better. No matter what the result was, we knew that we would be top eight in the world, so even if we got eighth, we were so proud.”

When it was time to find out who won, Perfect Storm Thunder joined the other seven teams that rounded out the top eight of their divisional final. They called the winners up from eighth to first. Eighth place? Not Davidson’s team. Seventh? Also, not Davidson’s team. “Sixth wasn’t us either. Then they called fifth, and it was another Canadian team that had won the Worlds previously. That was our goal, to get second to them. We just wanted to be up with the big dogs. We couldn’t believe it when they called them, but we hadn’t been called yet.”

Perfect Storm Thunder ended up placing fourth. “We started screaming!” Since the team placed first among the Canadian teams in their division, they won First Nations Cup for Canada. The top three winning teams were all from the USA, meaning their team was the second country to place, also giving them Second Nations Cup. Davidson said they felt like underdogs all season. “We pulled through at the end of the year, and honestly, that’s the time to do it.”

Davidson said that competitive cheer is not what many think it is. “All-star cheer is insane. It is so athletic, and you have to be in such good shape to do it. You have two and a half minutes to do a section of tumbling, flipping your body all around, and then going into stunts, throwing people in the air and catching them. Then you have pyramids, where girls are flipping in the middle and on the sides, flipping over people and then there are jumps and dance. You have to do all of that in two minutes and thirty seconds. And, you have to make it look like you’re having fun the whole time and not dying,” she chuckled.

She said a few of the boys on the team that play other sports say that cheer is harder athletic-wise. “It’s such a team sport. I know they always say that about other sports, but if one player on a hockey team can’t be there for a game, they can put someone else in that spot and still play. In cheer, if your flyer is missing, you can’t stunt for the day, or if you’re back spot is gone, you can’t put your stunt up, and then you are behind for the next practice.”

As she looks to the future, Davidson sees herself reaching new heights. “Maybe, catch me at the 2024 Olympics? Ha-ha. I don’t see myself quitting cheer any time soon. I would love to get on a USA team one day too.” Another local athlete, Kayla Dickson, 19, also competed at Worlds with her team Synergy with ACE.