Inferno’s fire of determination grants them access to competition bid that will take them over 4,600km away

When friends Jessica Haggith and Melissa Rempel decided to join forces about two years ago and

purchase equipment from Sabres Cheer to start their own company, Prestige Athletics, they couldn’t

have guessed what excitement awaited them in 2024.

At a recent competition in early December 2023 in Red Deer (New Era’s Alberta Championships),

Inferno, Prestige Athletics’ elite competition team, was battling it out. The night before, Haggith and

Rempel discovered that they could put their team in for a bid to attend a large, international

competition called The Finals hosted by Nfinity in Orlando, Florida. Putting in the bid meant that Inferno

would be in the pile from which the judges would choose to give one of just a handful of invitations.

Before going further, the pair spoke with the parents of the Inferno athletes to see what they thought.

“They all agreed to put in for it, so we did,” said Melissa. The next day, Inferno, comprised of 12 girls

aged 8-12, performed and did a great job, coming in third. The team then left and headed home for

Whitecourt, thinking nothing about the bid since they didn’t win.

As Haggith drove home, her phone rang. Another gym owner in Alberta, who was also at the Red Deer

competition, was excitedly calling. Haggith, who had carpooled, kept the conversation quiet so no one in

the car would know what was happening. “We had won our bid. They called to congratulate us. I

couldn’t believe it.”

She then called Rempel. “I just balled. I couldn’t believe it was real. It was pretty incredible,” said

Rempel, in tears. “My daughter is on the team, and I had to keep it a secret from her because we didn’t

want some kids to know and others not to know, so I had to keep it quiet all night. That was hard!” The

next day, Haggith and Rempel convinced everyone to meet at the gym to discuss the Red Deer

competition.

“We sat the girls down, and their parents were behind them. We had two banners. One banner was for

getting third place, and the other was for winning the bid. We placed one banner in front of the other

and held them up. They were excited to see that they had won third place. That’s when we dropped the

first banner and showed the second one,” said Rempel.

The parents saw the banner first because their daughters had turned around to thank them for their

support. “There were actually some squeals from the parents when they saw the banner,” said Haggith.

The most remarkable thing was that the athletes knew nothing about it. “The girls had no idea where we

were going because only their parents knew we had put in for the bid, not the girls. It was a big surprise

for them because they didn’t even know what was happening.”

With the news out, Haggith said it’s still just as unbelievable as December 9 when she got the call. “For

me, I’m still looking at it like I’m watching someone else’s life because this doesn’t happen to little, tiny

Whitecourt. We are a small gym compared to some gyms, with thousands of athletes competing every

weekend. I’m so proud of these girls and everything they’ve done, and I’m proud of Melissa and

everything we’ve been able to build over the last two years. It’s hard to describe. It feels like a dream.”

Competition judges don’t always give out bids based on the podium results, allowing something quite

special and surprising to happen. “If they see that fire and determination, then sometimes that’s the

deciding factor. We think that’s what happened here because we placed third. I think they saw our fire.”

Prestige Athletics and the Inferno team will be doing fundraisers to make it to Orlando, and sponsorship

letters will also go out soon. There’s also an open account at the Bottle Depot to help raise needed

funds. It’s anticipated to cost upwards of $35,000 for flights, registration, and hotels, and the group will

be leaning on their community to help make their dreams come true. Rempel and Haggith also hope to

put on a showcase just before May’s Orlando competition so that the community can see how hard the

athletes have worked.

There are around 100 athletes in the club, boys and girls from toddlers to teens, and 70 are on one of

the club’s six competition teams. The experience in store for Inferno is shared with Rempel and Haggith

just as much. “They’ve never seen a stage this big. We’ve never seen a stage this big, either! I don’t think

I’ve ever seen anything like what I will see when we go. There are 300 teams that are allowed to enter

this competition, and they are international. It’s huge!”

Inferno has five competitions to focus on before hopping on a plane and heading to Orlando, giving

them time to tweak their performances and grow even stronger. “I am proud. I am proud of the kids,

and I’m proud of the parents for supporting their kids. I’m beaming with pride. These kids have

overcome a lot,” said Rempel. To support the club, visit www.prestigeathletics.ca.