At seven in the evening, on the way to the University of the Philippines gym, one is reminded of why the place is called Diliman. It is so dark that with an overactive imagination, one might simply turn back and miss seeing the gym, which unlike the rest of the campus at this hour, is brightly lit and bustling with activity.
The gym is home to the university's athletes, including the multi-awarded UP Pep Squad. The team spends so much time at the gym that they could probably make their way there with their eyes closed. It's the kind of devotion that produces championships.
The UP Pep Squad is the defending UAAP cheerdance champion, rehearsing tirelessly for this Saturday's UAAP competition, now nearly as popular in the league as basketball. On UP Diliman's campus, where the Fighting Maroons hoops team hasn't won a title since the 1980s, cheerdance commands a fervent following, with UP students lining up for hours at the Big Dome this week for tickets.
Six-time UAAP champions, the UP Pep Squad will represent the Philippines in the 6th World Cheerleading Championships November 26 and 27 in Hong Kong.
They represented the country in the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea and in the 2008 Asian Cheerleading Championships in Tokyo, Japan.
Playful vibe, intense training
On Wednesday night, only a few days before the highly anticipated cheerdance competition, the team piles out of a convoy of cars, one bottle blonde head after another.
The fact that they are a unit is impossible to miss, and it isn't just because of their matching hair. The energy they give off is intense, and one can't help but be intimidated. They flow across the gym to their assigned spot, a graceful line of sunshine-haired dancers, and immediately set to work, warming up. Even if they're just stretching, you know they mean business.
Despite their seriousness, there's also a playful vibe, and you can tell that the members' closeness goes beyond their routines.
It's not surprising, considering their demanding training schedule. The team practices daily for at least three hours, and since they end way past dinner time, the members often grab a bite together before finally heading home.
"It's really hard at first, talagang ma-shoshock ka na six to eleven or six to twelve yung training. Kapag competition time, sobrang late na kami natatapos," says Laurence, the team's co-captain.
Many if not most of the members have been on the squad for as long as they've been enrolled. Despite the heavy schedule and the constant challenges, they wouldn't have it any other way.
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Information Courtesy of GMA News / CARMELA G. LAPEÑA
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