By Joanna Kakissis , Polina Lytvynova The Sunrise cheerleading team from Kharkiv, Ukraine, competes in the Ukraine Cheer Cup competition in the capital, Kyiv, on Dec. 13, 2025. Anton Shtuka for NPR hide caption KHARKIV, Ukraine — In a mirrored basement studio in this front-line city, seven women are practicing jumping splits. They're in their 50s and 60s — some have grandchildren. They wear matching Ukraine T-shirts and shake silvery pompoms to the beat of "She's A Lady" by Tom Jones. This is Sunrise, a competitive cheerleading squad. They have embraced this feel-good American sport as a way to cope with extreme stress and anxiety during four years of Russia's all-out war on Ukraine. "We train no matter what," says Iryna Nesterenko, the squad's captain. "When it's dark, and we're walking through the street while everything is burning. When there's no light. I tell my girls: 'We are the light.'" Nesterenko, the squad's captain, explains why they chose Sunrise as their name.…