Even Nuvolari had his picture taken, in 1936, alongside an “escort” that the organization of the Vanderbilt Cup, in America, made available to drivers racing in cars. A dark-haired girl in a suit, complete with bonnet, who followed the Mantuan champion day-and some insinuate even night-throughout his stay in the United States, in order to make his stay easier.
And the Flying Mantuan won the Cup, making Alfa Romeo triumph, not at all disturbed by the sympathetic presence of that ante litteram “parasol.”
Well dear male friends, lay down your hormones and remote control – for the lucky ones who will be able to enjoy the live broadcast of the Formula One Championship that is about to start – because from this year the saying “women and motors,” we can forget it.
The announcement made by Sean Bratches, chief operating officer of Liberty Media, which runs a major slice of motorsport events, including the world’s top motorsport competition, goes something like this, “We have been thinking about it for a year. The habit of using female curves to make a motorsport championship more attractive has to stop. Our values lead us to believe that the practice is not appropriate and relevant to F1 and its fans.”
And here, now, everyone is tearing up. The same commentators who on their social profiles post phrases such as “I stand with women,” “no to violence against women,” “women’s bodies should not be used as media commodities,” here they are, saying that yes, maybe some girls were showing up in a little too skimpy clothes, but that the show loses out. They uncork the champagne for the women’s defense associations, which thus see an end to a practice that, as mentioned, dates back to years when women’s emancipation was not even in its embryonic stages.
How about you, what do you think?
Personally, I find no difference between a Formula One and MotoGp umbrella (ah, didn’t you know they stay there??? Dorna has not spoken out…). Just as it seems to me that no one objects to girls awarding cyclists in the Giro d’Italia or Tour de France. Few-and I am talking about men and women-seem to give any weight to images of this or that perfume, which, the more clothing-less the performers in the commercial are, the more it costs as deemed valuable.
I will then spare you the images of certain advertisements in comparison with which Oliviero Toscani would be a demure advertiser today.
Let’s talk about it, because in my opinion between now and the beginning of the championship, we’re going to see some good things….
Or perhaps, it is better to say, will we imagine them?
Alexander Zelioli
