Olivia Wilde
While Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, doesn’t have a cheerleading team, it does have a “step team,” which is apparently exactly like a cheerleading team, but it has a different name. However, according to Olivia Wilde, stepping is “another form of cheering. If you say so, Wilde.
Wilde is incredibly famous, well-known around the world as a beauty and an actress, but she isn’t the most famous person from her school or even from her “step team” – that honor belongs to former president George W. Bush, who has much older photographs that feature him wearing a similar outfit to the one Olivia is sporting here.
Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi
Before she became one of the stars of 'Jersey Shore', everyone's favorite miniature Italian-American was part of the cheerleading team from her high school in Marlboro, New York.
The sport wasn't a springboard to fame like many of the people on this list – in fact, Polizzi has commented how difficult the team was for her, especially regarding her weight: “Cheerleading was my life in high school, but it wasn't always easy for me. I started to be anorexic. There were freshmen who were seventy pounds, and I was, like, my spot as a flier is going to get taken away. So I ended up starving myself.”
Phaedra Parks
From high-powered attorney to reality show star of "Real House Wives of Atlanta," Phaedra Parks got her start as an adorable cheerleader at Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia. There si more to her than just great looks and cheering talent, and she has reached every goal she has set for herself.
She passed the time cheering for her team as part of the squad, but when she graduated in 1990, she went on to pursue a career in law, leading her to get cheers not only on the field or court but also in the courtroom. Now, if that's not enough, she is also an author, a businesswoman, a philanthropist, and a motivational speaker.
Kirstie Alley
There must be something about cheerleading that helps on the path to acting. Is it physical training? Is spending time convincing people to think a certain thing? Is it just a correlation? Whatever the reason, yet another famous actress, the late Kirstie Alley, cheered at her school, the Wichita Southeast High School in Kansas. Maybe it's the thing to do, or maybe cheering makes auditioning later on that much easier, how else can you explain the great success theses former cheerleaders have achieved?
After dropping out of Kansas State, she moved to Hollywood and proceeded to make it big, acting in the famous sitcom 'Cheers', and much more. She's even successfully gotten out of Scientology.
Miley Cyrus
Since she's the daughter of famous country music star Billy Ray Cyrus, it's no surprise Miley has made her way into the spotlight time and time again. Before she even appeared as the dual-living character in "Hannah Montana," seven-year-old Cyrus was already getting eyes on her as a cheerleader for the Tennessee Premiere soccer team in her Franklin hometown.
Performing is in her blood, but even the biggest names on this list usually get their start in high school, but not Miley – she was ready to start her career before even hitting ten. She is one of the youngest stars to succeed so tremendously and remain on top of the list for so many years.