Let’s Talk Cheer: The Cheerleading Podcast For Parents & Coaches · Jason Larkins, Bleav

3 Ways Brutal Honesty Lead to a Summit Championship

October 29, 2025·1 hr 23 min·5 clips

Brian turned to Andy at NCA and confessed, 'I don't know if you've realized this, but we're not very good at cheerleading.'

This episode features Andy and Brian, owners and coaches of Top Gun UK, who share their journey from a small gym in England to becoming 10-time Summit champions. Host Jason Marquez explores how their program transformed through humility and relentless practice. The conversation centers on the pivotal moment in 2018 when their junior level one team first won a Summit championship. Andy and Brian started with just four panels of mats in a rented gymnastics facility that disliked their noise. They first attended the NCA Championships as spectators to study successful American teams, realizing their own teams were not competitive. In 2017, they took a hastily assembled team of 11 athletes to Summit, changed divisions last-minute, and placed 14th without making finals. The following year, they received a retrospective bid to form an international junior one team, training from December to April with initially inconsistent performances. A key moment occurred when a coach at Top Gun Orlando had his team watch theirs, commenting that their kids looked better. At the 2018 Summit, their team incurred a three-point deduction on day one, scoring 110 out of 150, which they believed eliminated them from finals. The athletes cried for two hours on a baseball field, leading to an emotional team discussion about personal struggles and cheer's importance. They were shocked to later be announced as finalists, ultimately winning the international division and tying with another gym for the championship. The hosts emphasize that initial failure and brutal self-assessment were crucial for growth. They note that being in a high-pressure environment like Summit, even without winning, can profoundly motivate athletes. The episode reveals that their signature synchronized tumbling, now a strength, was once so unreliable they couldn't hit it cleanly months before winning. A memorable insight is that their small gym's spatial constraints forced creative choreography, which later became a stylistic trademark. The tone is candid and reflective, blending personal storytelling with practical coaching insights. The style is conversational, with hosts and guests freely sharing vulnerabilities and pivotal failures. Listeners who enjoy underdog stories and the gritty details behind building a champion culture will love this episode. Those seeking only technical cheerleading instruction or who prefer highly polished success narratives might find it less engaging.

As heard by us

A rough score sheet becomes a clear lesson in humility, repetition, and the long road to champion status.

Top Gun UK's climb to 10-time Summit champions is framed through a 110 out of 150 score sheet, a finals scare, and the program's early days in four panels in a tiny gym in England.

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Why you'd press play

When you need a reminder that a rough Summit score can still turn into hardware.

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