Throughout the academic year, Mia and her team travel across Canada, performing in roughly three competitions. To prepare for both competitions and football games, they practice two to three times a week for two and a half hours. Outside of team commitments, Mia adds two gym days of her own, while aiming to leave time for rest and recovery each week. With late-night cheer practices and early-morning classes, time management is Mia’s biggest challenge as a student- athlete. She keeps everything organized in a Google Calendar, time-blocking practices, study sessions and Alpha Phi events so she can meet her commitments without letting anything fall through the cracks. “It can be rough, but I’ve come to learn that I can handle any challenges thrown my way and truly achieve anything I put my mind to,” Mia says. One of Mia’s proudest achievements in cheer came after she was demoted from the Level 7 team — the team she was on during her first and second year — to Level 4 in her third year. As a flyer, Mia struggled with backflips, and she didn’t get many safe opportunities to practice during team sessions. “I was too scared to take the few chances I did get, and I think that’s why I was moved to the lower-level team,” she recalls. “It was really heartbreaking being part of something and building my identity around it, only to be kicked off in my junior year.” On the Level 4 team, Mia grew as both an athlete and a teammate. At first, she saw the demotion as a failure, but she pushed herself harder than ever that year, taking extra time in the open gym to master her backflips. Her dedication paid off: she can now execute them with ease and confidence. “It felt amazing to finally do it. I couldn’t be prouder of myself,” she says. “The Level 4 experience was a character- building opportunity. Now I know I can handle setbacks with a newfound appreciation, understanding that they aren’t failures but chances to rebuild.” This year, Mia returned to her former Level 7 teammates for her final season at McGill, bringing passion, compassion and confidence to every moment, on and off the mat.
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