Why does cycling have podium girls?

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Cyclist Chris Froome being kissed by podium girls

自行车运动员Chris Froome桃花满面

There are not many jobs that include cheek-kissing in the formal duties

包含吻脸颊这类内容的工作，往日真心不多。

Every stage of the Tour de France ends with the leading cyclists on the podium. There are always two women whose duty it is to give them their coloured jersey and kiss them on the cheek, writes Annie Flury.

环法赛每站都有一名领骑手站上颁奖台，一般有两名女性负责给选手颁发各种颜色领骑衫、并在选手脸颊附上香吻，Annie Flurry写道。

Some might view "podium girls" as a little anachronistic. But they are a feature in Europe's biggest races including the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana.

部分人觉得“颁奖女郎”似乎有点过时，她们可是欧洲大赛包括环意赛和环西赛的组成部分。

The Tour hostesses, as they are officially known, are chosen from hundreds who apply every year.

主办方从每年从数百人中挑选大家所熟知的颁奖女郎。

Decades ago they were usually selected from the town hosting the stage finish and merely had to be under 30 and roughly the same height. Now hopefuls are generally put forward by modelling agencies and whittled down to just 20 by the Tour's main sponsor, French bank LCL.

几十年前，每分站选出统一高度，30岁以下的女性。如今，赛会主要赞助商里昂信贷银行，委托模特公司遴选，并将年龄降至20。

Magalie Thierry, who is studying for a PhD in biology, is working as a podium girl for the second year. "Each day working here seems like a dream."

生物博士后Magalie Thierry，做颁奖女郎2年了，“这里每天的工作恍如梦幻。”

The majority of the job is public relations, looking after VIPs and journalists, she says. "The podium is just 'a plus'. Maybe the ceremony could seem out of date but most of the public loves it. I think podium girls give a little touch of femininity to this sport."

颁奖女郎主要的工作是公关，照顾VIP和记者们，“颁奖是锦上添花”。颁奖环节颇过时，但大众似乎很受落。我想是因为颁奖女郎给自行车这项运动注入了女性的气息。

Peter Sagan was widely criticised for pinching a podium girl's bottom

Peter Sagan因捏颁奖女郎屁股而广受批评 

The hostesses kiss the victor on the cheek, but, curiously, actually talking to the riders is a bit of a no-no.

女郎吻胜利者脸颊，很奇怪，与选手交谈却被禁止。

In 2003, podium girl Melanie Simonneau was sacked for accepting a note from stage winner George Hincapie. The couple went on to marry. Slovakian cyclist Peter Sagan had to apologise earlier this year after pinching the bottom of a hostess at the end of the Tour de Flanders.

2003年，颁奖女郎Melanie Simonnea被辞退，因为收了分站冠军George Hincapie递的纸条，两人后来完婚。斯洛伐克选手Peter Sagan，今年为自己在环荷赛末段捏颁奖女郎屁股的行为道歉。

And there are those who think of the whole business of podium girls as a little antediluvian.

还有很多人认为颁奖女郎这类物事非常原始。

"I would like to think that by the 21st Century women would be more than just beautiful ornaments to stand beside successful men," says Laura Weislo, deputy editor of Cyclingnews.com. "The only time that you see a female presence on television in professional cycling is the models on the podium, and it only heightens the inequality in the sport."

“我想一个21世纪的女人不应只是一件拄在男人旁边的漂亮物件”，Cyclingnews.com副主编Laura Weislo说，“专业自行车赛事当中，你唯一能看见的女性就是颁奖女郎，这加剧了这项运动的性别不平等。”

Kelly "Minx" Riordan, a journalist and podium hostess in cyclo-cross, where riders tackle shorter courses over more varied terrain, says the Tour hostesses are an essential part of tradition. "It wouldn't be a proper ceremony without them," she says. "These are talented women in their own right. They shouldn't be dismissed simply as eye candy."

绰号“浪姐”的记者Kelly Riordan，同时也担任自行车公路越野赛事的颁奖女郎。公路越野赛程短，覆盖地形更广泛。Kelly Riordan说，颁奖女郎是传统的重要组成部分，若缺少她们，颁奖仪式将有所欠缺，有头脑的女性腹有诗书气自华，不应该被简单视为养眼花瓶。

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