Grid girls

Grid girls

Is this a first for cycling? We have “grid girls” on the start line of Tirreno-Adriatico.

Note this is in Italy. Often it feels like no presentation on the Giro is complete without a blond model and the Giro picks a woman every year as its madrina, a woman tasked with blessing the race in the same way a woman might launch a ship.

If you haven’t heard of grid girls before, you haven’t seen motorbike racing. It’s common in motorsport where riders on the start line are often accompanied by a woman with an umbrella… and not much else.

Superbike
Look at that rear! (are they carbon silencers?)

There’s a difference in that a motorbike race wearing heavy leather. Riders can cook in the sun whilst they wait for the start to happen and so the shade of an umbrella is actually useful. The logoed umbrellas are valuable publicity too. Obviously the model and bikinis are not part of this practical aspect and the display will please some and enrage others but what I’m saying is that if there’s a possible excuse for an umbrella on the grid of a motorbike race, it seems a little bit surplus for a bike race.

13 thoughts on “Grid girls”

  1. Not being a woman, I certainly cannot comment on their behalf, but I think the umbrella girls are a cool tradition. Let’s face it: women are beautiful! A sunny day full of eager riders, beautiful ladies, and colorful uniforms is a wonderful sight to behold. I believe that women are peers and equals with men, and though this practice does by its very definition objectify women, I still think it’s a pretty innocuous display and certainly not demeaning. Just my 2 cents.

  2. Yet another method for a potential sponsor to get some exposure. I don’t see a problem here, it is not like the women are dressing too scantily, really no different than a podium girl or any of the sponsor girls who are around the race depart. If it brings money, it’s all good as long things stay “in bounds”. IMO.

  3. I have to laugh, in the picture the lucky riders are all in the shade anyway and in EDnl’s example the brollies aren’t doing their job. Maybe ther need some training or be UCI certified?

  4. No different to the podium..
    The tradition of Podium girls is so entrenched, I think the guy in the white robe at the Tour of Oman was lucky not to cop a kiss on the cheek when he handed over the winner’s flowers. Just an automatic reaction…

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