Coach Bailey Roberts and coach Austin Wadden help Limitless Athletics’ new owner, coach Kandal Leonard (right), pop the champagne on Saturday morning as the cheer club celebrated its new space and owner. Taylor Weaver Meridian Source
The sky is the limit for Border City cheerleaders as Limitless Athletics opened the doors to its new facility.
Previously known as Flight Athletics, the cheer club was recently purchased by local business owner and personal trainer Kandal Leonard and is located at 6643 63 St. Close, Lloydminster, Alta.
With the new ownership came a name change, and Leonard thought it was only fitting to stick to the brand she’s been using for 20 years.
“My personal training business was called Limitless Fitness and Nutrition and I picked that when I first started 20 years ago because I truly believe everything we can do as humans is limitless,” she said on Saturday morning after popping some champagne to celebrate the occasion.
“We just need to believe in ourselves and have the right circle, and I really wanted to transfer that to this.”
Leonard initially got into cheer when her first daughter turned five and gave the sport a try.
“We started with Cheer Legacy when it opened, then they closed, then the Cheer Force Jets took over and changed their name to Flight Athletics, and now it’s Limitless Athletics, to stay. We are not changing, we’re not going anywhere, we’re rooted in this community,” she said. “I’ve lived here for 20 years, I have my other business, Supplement King in town, my children were born here, they’re going to school here, we aren’t going anywhere, so this club is here to stay.”
Limitless Athletics offers recreational tumbling, ninja classes and cheer and prep classes for novice and elite.
The club also does flyer training, strength training, group training and personal training for all ages from three and up.
Aside from now being the owner of a cheer club, Leonard and the team of coaches at Limitless are really looking forward to utilizing their new space.
“We have a 10,000 sq. ft. building, which gives us 2,500 sq. ft. for our parents and athletes to relax in,” she said. “We also have a 7,500 sq. ft. gym, we have a full competition floor, a 32-foot tumbling track, mirrors for the kids to practise their dance with, we have custom-made tumbling equipment that’s being shipped to us now. It’s new, it’s clean, and it’s bright, and I really believe it has a welcoming feel when you come in.”
Bailey Roberts, a Level 6 cheer coach with roughly 12 years of experience as well as the club’s director, is greatly looking forward to being able to offer more to athletes in this new space.
“The new space is so clean, organized, and it’s a big upgrade, which we’re very excited about. There’s going to be new equipment in the gym area and a little more floor space, which is also very nice,” she said.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about the athletes and what they want. We’re just excited to be able to support them as best as possible.”
Austin Wadden, a Level 3 coach who recently made the switch to Limitless Athletics from Explosion Gymnastics, is hoping cheerleading will help get kids out of their shells, as it did for him.
“In 2006 I watched my cousin train for an entire season and that’s how I got started,” he said. “I loved the way that it looked, I loved the energy from everybody, and myself, I was more of an introvert and didn’t do a whole lot, but as soon as I saw it I knew it was a way I could get out of my shell.”
Wadden moved to Lloydminster from Nova Scotia in 2021 to pursue a career in full-time coaching and is excited for the new adventure at Limitless.
“I love the atmosphere and I love the coaching team here,” he said. “We have a wide range of things that go on here. There’s so much to offer and there’s something for everybody.”
Looking at cheerleading as a whole in the Border City, Leonard explained the sport is growing fast with no end in sight.
“When we first started when Cheer Legacy opened, there were probably 40-50 kids in it, and at the end of the season last year, we had between 150-170 athletes registered in the gym for different activities,” she said.
Leonard is also excited about the summer class schedule at the gym.
“We’re offering our summer class pass, which gives you unlimited access to the gym from 4-8:30 p.m. and has different classes like flyer training, tumbler training … pretty much anything to do with cheerleading. Also, from May 8 to Aug. 25, we have pre-school summer camps as well as tryouts for cheerleading from June 6-8.”
