Please Help Kiella Represent Australia

Hi, my name is Kiella, I’m 11 years old and I live in the Wollondilly area in NSW. I participate in Competitive Cheerleading and I train 4 nights a week at a local gym. I have recently been selected as a Team Australia Preliminary Athlete for Cheerleading. If successful I will need to travel to Florida in April 2025 to represent Australia.

Hundreds of athletes from all around Australia had applied to be apart of Team Australia. In my division (YUCO) only about 55 athletes were selected for the Preliminary Team. I will now need to fly to the Gold Coast in December to attend in-person tryouts where they will select the final 26 athletes to send overseas. From now until December, I will be issued homework online every week from my Team Australia Coaches where I will need to submit videos of my tumbling, stunt and flyer skills in preparation for the in-person tryouts.

As this is an international competition, there are lots of costs involved. I will already be at the Gold Coast competing in the AASCF Nationals for Cheerleading in December which my mum is driving me up there. Unfortunately Nationals are later this year which means Nationals are being held at the same time as my Year 6 Graduation and Formal. My mum now needs to drive me back home to NSW so that I can be apart of my Year 6 celebrations and not miss out. Team Australia have organised in-person tryouts on the Gold Coast the following day after my Graduation, giving my mum no other option than to fly us both back up to the Gold Coast right after my formal so that I can attend the try outs but still graduate with my classmates.

If successful in gaining a position on Team Australia, I will need to attend three training camps (in January, March and April) which two have already been confirmed to be interstate in Victoria so my parents will need to organise flights and accomodation for me to attend the training camps. To compete, my parents needs to pay for flights from Australia to Orlando Florida USA (approximately $5000 for my mum and I), accomodation near the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex (approximately $5000 for a week as I need to be there to train for a few days leading up to my event), my parents also need to purchase me a Uniform, Merchandise, ICU Registration and Fees including Team/Specialist Coaching and Support Staff, Camp Costs, USA Training Costs and Music. All these things total to about $3000. As I am under 16 years old, I will need my mum present with me the whole time which adds more to the cost.

I have created this GoFundMe, hoping to fundraise as much money as I can to help my parents take me overseas. I wanted to apply, I have been training hard and I am very proud that I have made it this far already. I come from a big family, I am the eldest of five children so I would like to try my hardest to help my mum and dad with the cost of this experience as much as I can. If you are able to help contribute any amount, small or big, you will be helping me achieve my goals of representing my country doing what I love.

Thank you so much for helping me to achieve my goals. Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi.

Love Kiella :)

*As I am only selected as a Preliminary Athlete at this stage, I want to start fundraising now so that I have more time to raise as much money as I can. I will find out in December if I have been successful and if I am, I will need to provide proof my booked flight details to Florida in January. If I’m unfortunately unsuccessful in making the final team, any money I have raised I will put towards my training in 2025 and I will hopefully have the opportunity to try out for Team Australia in 2026.