| But 11-year-old Shannen Wylie, who turns 12 at the outset of the tournament, will be forced to go through the daunting experience on her own after confusion over ticket allocations saw her family miss out.
Other mothers in the city have already threatened to withdraw their daughters from the Scottish and European Cheerleading Championships event at the Caird Hall on March 31 after it emerged they might not see their children perform.
Julie Wylie, Shannen’s mum, claimed the whole affair reeks of favouritism.
She said Dundee Sharks, her daughter’s group, have just 30 mums requiring tickets, but their request apparently can’t be fulfilled.
But schools from the west of Scotland with demands in the region of 100 seem to have been satisfied, Mrs Wylie added.
Organiser Steve Walls said tickets had been on sale since December and parents had enough time to apply.
He said it was made abundantly clear parents should apply as early as possible.
But Mrs Wylie claimed the information she received indicated cash for requested tickets had to be received by February 22.
“It is her first competition and it’s her birthday,” she explained. “That’s why we really wanted to be there. We only wanted two tickets.
“I did not know the tickets had to be ordered in December. As far as we were told the money had to be in by February 22. Otherwise, obviously I would have booked them.
“We didn’t even know what the team was going to be in December. We only knew our team just after Christmas.”
Mrs Wylie said Shannen is devastated no one will be there to cheer her on.
The championships have been staged at the Caird Hall for eight years and bring an estimated £1 million to the local economy. |
