Early mornings, countless miles - all in bid for cheerleading glory

Four cheerleaders have said a lot of "blood, sweat and tears" have gone into their dream of competing at this year's Allstar World Championships in Orlando, Florida.

Every Sunday, Orla McConnell, Karen Breslin, Clodagh McGonagle and Megan Moore make an eight-hour round trip to Dublin - all for a few hours on the mat honing their cheerleading routine.

The quartet are part of Dublin-based cheerleading team Strikeforce Cheer heading to what is considered one of the sport's biggest international competitions.

McConnell said balancing life as a mother of a one-year-old, working full-time, and a demanding cheer schedule has not been easy, but that it would all be worth it when their team performed.

"We all wake up at about six in the morning," McConnell, 24, from Londonderry, told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme.

"Karen and Clodagh come from Inishowen [in County Donegal] and collect me in Derry.

"Then we go to Strabane to meet Megan and from there we head down to Dublin."

Training lasts about three hours before they turn around and make the same journey home.

It is a routine the four have repeated week after week, all in preparation for what has been a passion from an early age.

"It's a lot," McConnell admitted, "but we've all put in so much hard work that we can't stop now."

As a stunt group within their team, the four also train together during the week, putting in extra hours at a gym in Derry with another cheer group called Titans Cheer to refine lifts, timing and trust.

"In all-star cheerleading, routines can last just two minutes but are packed with complex stunts, tumbling and choreography," McConnell explained.

McGonagle performs as the "flyer", which is the person who is lifted and thrown into the air by her teammates.

"We quite literally have her life in our hands," McConnell said.

"It takes a lot of drilling to get it right, and because we are level four there is somewhat an element of danger, but when it all comes together, it's something really special."

It will not be the first time there will be Derry representation at the competition.

In 2025 the GALAXY All Stars cheerleading club from the city took almost 40 members to Florida after qualifying two teams for the event in Orlando.

The Allstar World Championship 2026 cheerleading and dance competition is scheduled to take place across four days from 16 to 19 April.

Teams from around the globe, competing in a variety of categories and different age groups from Level 1 to Level 7, will be taking part in the 2026 contest.

The event features more than 1,000 teams, and in previous years has seen cheerleaders from the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia and the United Kingdom competing across multiple days, divisions, and skill levels in both cheer and dance.

Teams earn the chance to compete either by qualifying at regional - or what are know as open - events, or by earning bids or credits through performances in prior competitions hosted by the Open Championship Series.

McConnell and Breslin both work full-time and are mothers to young children, while McGonagle and Moore are both balancing their cheer training around university.

Balancing work, study, family life and their sport has required sacrifice and a lot of support from family and friends, McConnell said.

"Thankfully to our families, and our partners, we've been able to keep going," she said.

"There were so many times I came home crying, wanting to quit.

"Injuries, knock-backs, not making teams, but all those moments have made reaching this stage even more meaningful.

"When I think about stepping onto that floor in Orlando, I just think of all the blood, sweat and tears it's taken to get there...I just can't believe it's actually happening."