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to
ck realize that women have been
permitted to vote for a good few years
now. So, perhaps it comes as no
surprise that certain kinds of men
(and certain sports) are determined to
hold on to podium girls, and all that
they represent.
IF THEY FEEL threatened it’s no
surprise. The influence of the #MeToo
and Time’s Up movements has put theculture of podium girls under scrutiny.
Some sports have even had their own
#MeToo-inspired moment—though
this was surely less about enlighten-
ment than about pacifying sponsors
and TV networks who made it clear
they didn’t wish to be associated with
outdated sexist sports culture.
Cue some bizarre contradictions.
On the one hand, boxing in the United
Kingdom is grimly hanging on toPodium girls in high heels flank a green-jersey winner in the annual
Tour de France cycling race.readersdigest.co.in 25