European sports ditch female hostesses

They're known as "grid girls," "walk-on girls" and "ring card girls" -- attractive, often scantily clad young women hired to work on the sidelines and podiums at maledominated sports events. Now, many of them are out of a job, as European sports are having a #MeToo moment.

"This custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern-day societal norms," Sean Bratches, managing director of commercial operations at the auto-racing circuit Formula One, said last week as he announced that "grid girls" would no longer appear on the track at races worldwide. Formula One, based in the U.K., was acquired last year by Liberty Media Corp. of the U.S.

Earlier in January, the U.K.-based Professional Darts Corp. said it would stop using "walk-on girls" to accompany male competitors to the stage at its tournaments. And Spain's Vuelta a Espana bike race previously ended the practice of having female hostesses appear on the podium with race winners. The event, sponsored by the Paris-based Amaury Sport Organisation, substituted what it described as "elegantly" dressed men and women.

Amaury, which also organizes the Tour de France as well as European golf tournaments and the Dakar Road Rally, didn't return calls seeking comment on whether those events could be affected. The winners of the Tour de France's daily stages as recently as last year were congratulated and kissed on the cheek by young women on the podium.

Some event sponsors say the use of women in such roles projects an outdated image of sports, making it harder to attract new fans and younger television audiences.

The darts organization told British news media that it acted "following feedback from our host broadcasters." Britain's ITV television network, which broadcasts many of its competitions, said it had been consulted and approved of the decision.