Collegiate acrobatics and tumbling took another major step towards NCAA Championship status on Thursday.

The NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics voted on May 15 in favor of a recommendation that Divisions I, II and III sponsor legislation that would confirm acrobatics and tumbling as a Championship sport. It would be potentially approved at the 2026 NCAA Convention in Washington D.C. — which would then allow its earliest competition to occur with the 2027 season.

The sport, which has been an NCAA Emerging Sport for Women since 2020, has been on a steady track for adoption as an NCAA Championship Sport. Adoption would mean that acrobatics and tumbling would compete in a season-end NCAA Championship, like other association sports. The 2026 NCAA Convention, where the deciding vote would occur, is scheduled for January 14-17, 2026, with the first championship to be competed the following spring.

In its release, the NCAA noted that the recommendation is “contingent on official confirmation of the sport’s sponsorship and participation numbers for spring 2025 competition, which will occur over the summer.” 

Acrobatics and tumbling is currently run by the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association, which hosted its first meet in 2010. The NCATA organizes and facilitates the National Championships every year, which invites eight teams and select non-team competition athletes to a postseason playoff. In April 2025, No. 2 Oregon lost to No. 1 Baylor in the NCATA Championship.

Oregon’s acrobatics and tumbling program has won four NCATA Championships since its inception in 2010. Head coach Taylor Susnara, a former All-American at Oregon, will enter her fifth season as the Ducks’ head coach in 2026.