Iliana Delgado is one of 27 girls on the Downey High School (Calif.) junior varsity cheerleading squad. Unlike the other 26, Delgado can’t hear the fans that she is encouraging to cheer.
Delgado, 15, is the first ever deaf cheerleader to make the squad at Downey. Iliana earned her spot on the team during a tryout that featured more than 100 girls, despite the fact that she is unable to hear any of the audible signals or cues.
“I put her on because Iliana earned it,” cheerleading coach Leslie Patterson told KTTV in Los Angeles. “She tried out just like any other girl. She worked hard just like any other girl and her scores fell within the lines just like any other girl.”
Of course, there are challenges. Iliana has trouble with timing, mostly because she has to look at what the other girls are doing and can’t rely on listening like the rest of them. Rather than using a normal countdown, a coach will tap Delgado to let her know when it’s her turn.
“I feel good about myself,” Delgado said through sign. “Sometimes I feel a little frustrated because I struggle when I can’t hear something but people encourage me and I keep going on.”
Those of us who can hear will never fully understand how difficult it must be to do something like cheerleading when you hear nothing. The fact that Iliana is the first deaf cheerleader to make the squad at Downey shows how gifted she is.
For more heartwarming stories like Delgado’s, click here.
