Japan’s grannies bitten by cheerleading bug
Sprightly women: Takino (centre) and members of Japan Pom Pom performing during the national cheerleading and dance championship 2016 of the United Spirit Association Japan in Chiba, a Tokyo suburb. — AFP
Strutting her stuff in a gold-hemmed mini-skirt, white leather boots and shaking silver pom-poms, octogenarian Fumie Takino has discovered her elixir of youth – cheerleading.
Takino and her troupe of spirited grannies tweak the nose of old age, even if their rambunctious routine to the song Dreamgirls leaves them painfully out of breath and their pink tank tops dripping with sweat.
Takino, 84, has spearheaded the group of more than 20 bubbly seniors for some two decades, founding the “Japan Pom-Pom” squad after being bitten by the cheerleading bug, despite it traditionally being the preserve of teenage girls, in her sixties.
“You have to be 55 or older,” said Takino, referring to the qualification for joining her team, the average age of which is 70.
“Once you hit the age of 70, you have to admit it’s downhill,” she said with a smile, before adding: “We’ve come a long way in 20 years.”
Japan is renowned for its sprightly pensioners: women live for an average of 87 years and men to 80. But the average “healthy” lifespan is 10 years less for both sexes, meaning many suffer physical and mental ailments in the final decade of life.
Takino, however, insists that her glamorous hobby has helped mitigate the effects of ageing – making her feel mentally and physically more agile.
Takino added that she would not have had the confidence to pick up the pom-poms in her youth, explaining that she became emboldened by changes she made in middle age.
After completing a master’s degree in gerontology at age 53 at the University of North Texas and a work placement in New York, she returned home with a new-found sense of freedom.
But it was actually in Japan that she encountered cheerleading with its eye-popping array of moves, from human towers, somersaults and back flips.
Takino immediately rounded up five friends to start her own troupe after first hearing about cheerleading. Two decades later, the grannies gather each week for intense training – and while they don’t overdo the acrobatics, they take practice seriously, even analysing videos of themselves to improve.
Given their age, some members have to drop out for health issues or to care for ageing spouses, but new recruits are easy to find.
Shinko Kusajima says forging new personal bonds is a huge attraction.
“When you get old, you keep losing friends. But you always have mates here to share a good time,” she said. — AFP
