Cheerleading expert: It's not a competitive sport

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- An expert in cheerleading has testified that cheerleading should not be a competitive sport, saying that making it so would threaten "classical sideline cheerleading."

Jeff Webb, CEO of the cheerleading organization Varsity Spirit, testified for the players Tuesday in federal court in Bridgeport in a lawsuit against Quinnipiac University. Five volleyball players sued after the school decided to eliminate women's volleyball in favor of a competitive cheer squad. Webb said competitive cheerleading is as much a sport as chess.

A federal judge is being asked in part to decide whether cheerleading can be counted as a sport by schools looking for ways to meet gender-equity requirements.