Was Ravens Cheerleader Courtney Lenz Dropped From Super Bowl Over Weight Gain?
This week, a cheerleader for the Baltimore Ravens was dropped from the Super Bowl lineup for unknown reasons, but in a recent interview, Courtney Lenz opines that she was excused because of her weight.
Lenz is a 5-year vet of the Ravens cheerleading squad, and announced that she plans to retire at the end of the season. Despite this, she didn’t get an invitation to join the team in New Orleans to cheer the team in the Super Bowl. In an interview with Access Hollywood, Lenz said that she was dropped from the Super Bowl due to an apparent weight gain.
“During the season, I was 124. That was consistently, they wanted me to get back down to 121, 120, which is what I was at when I was 18, 19, when I started on the team. That was the only disciplinary action I had during the year. I got benched because of my weight, and they said that was the reason,” she explained.
“Anybody that had disciplinary action taken during the season was automatically disqualified [from the Super Bowl]. However, there are some girls on the team that were also benched for their weight, and are going. So they just aren’t consistent, it isn’t fair. That’s why I brought this to the attention of the fans because what they’re doing is not right.”
The team’s official statement on the matter didn’t mention anything about Lenz’s weight gain. Via YardBarker:
“As set by the NFL, we are permitted to bring 32 cheerleaders to the Super Bowl. Our selection process was based upon three criteria: seniority, performance ability and personal conduct throughout the season. As much as we would like to take the whole team, we are unable to do so, due to parameters set by the NFL.”
You’d think that being a 5-year vet would get her “seniority” protections.
Many fans are outraged by Ravens’ decision to drop Lenz from the team for the Super Bowl. Some have started an online petition to get her back on the Super Bowl squad. Since January 25, the petition has gottenover 25,000 signatures.
What do you think? Was Courtney Lenz dropped for her weight? Sound off!
