LONDON: Formula 1 will end the long-standing practice of using walk-on grid girls, commencing with the start of the 2018 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season.
These changes also apply to F1’s other motorsports series that take place during the Grands Prix weekends such as F2.
F1 is owned by Liberty Media, which completed its takeover from former commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone in January 2017.
“Formula 1 considers the time spent by teams and drivers on the grid before a race as one of celebration, where guests and various performers can add to the glamour and spectacle of the Grand Prix, enabling promoters and partners to showcase their countries and products,” reads a statement issyued by F1 on the decision.
“Over the last year we have looked at a number of areas which we felt needed updating so as to be more in tune with our vision for this great sport,” said Sean Bratches, managing director, Commercial Operations at Formula 1.
“While the practice of employing grid girls has been a staple of Formula 1 Grands Prix for decades, we feel this custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern day societal norms. We don’t believe the practice is appropriate or relevant to Formula 1 and its fans, old and new, across the world.”
F1’s decision was applauded by the Women’s Sport Trust a charity raising the visibility and increasing the impact of women’s sport, Reuters reports.
“Thank you (at)F1 for deciding to stop using grid girls. Another sport making a clear choice about what they want to stand for,” the trust posted on Twitter.
The Professional Darts Corporation has also scrapped “walk-on girls” before matches.
Other motorsports have stopped the usage of “grid girls.” The World Endurance Championship, which hosts the famous 24 Hours Le Mans race, stopped doing it prior to the start of the 2015 season, the newswire further reports.
The new F1 season begins on March 25 with the 2018 Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.
