Victoria Pendleton

i quite fancy her. always had a thing for athletic women

:o

to answer my own question, yes it was and you can buy a signed print for $18,000.

i find her quite attractive. and i think it's the fact that she's very very good at what she does, and the fact that she is at the peak of physical condition that contributes greatly to that attraction. if you said to me she is a secretary at the local solicitors, she would seem as attractive.
all of which is a much better role model for 'sexiness' than some slapper who rolls out of China White at 4 am and gets snapped by the paps.

+1 to Aidan though - it's a shame that female athletes have to go down this route to get accepted, as if somehow stripping off and posing for lads' mags validates them.

Hm I dunno. Maybe they're trying to make the point that it's possible to have world-class athletic prowess and be feminine at the same time. Some men are intimidated by a woman with more brains than them. So I'm sure there are some who are intimidated by a woman with more muscles as well.

There's also a distinction between "athletes" and "celebrities". A minority of athletes are, for whatever reason, elevated into the ranks of celebrities, and naturally people judge them on the critiera commonly used to judge celebrities... i.e. looks, sexiness, etc. I have no idea who won the last Olympic gold in any event, but I can name a bunch of hot blonde tennis stars and sexy footballers.

These people are not just athletes, they're celebrities. If they can be top-notch athletes and rake in extra money from photographic royalties... more power to them. If they're crap athletes, well, no amount of hotness will fix that... and then we can all deride them for being phonies.

I can imagine that many athletes get to the point where they don't want to be regarded merely as machines. Top level sport turns your body shape into whatever maximises performance, and it's not always what is regarded as sexually attractive. Unfortunately we deem muscle development and power to be the signifiers for masculine virility - I could see how a female athlete might want to be considered sexy on her own terms when her dedication has stripped her of much of her "femininity".

While the black-dress shot definitely points to the pin-up side of things, it's arguable that the nude shot of VP here is absolutely about celebrating her athleticism and superior muscle development; okay she's got a Trek underneath her but riding a bike is what she does. Arguably the sexualisation of the image is in the eye of the beholder.

I was thinking more broadly than just VP - I can't think of any half attractive female athlete who hasn't ended up doing a spread in a lads' mag - sometimes quite literally.

Fair enough, and yes it's incredibly shallow state of affairs but as the old adage goes, sex sells..

Just so the ladies don't feel left out...here's a pic of a famous male 'pin up' athlete...

Just so the ladies don't feel left out...here's a pic of a famous male 'pin up' athlete...

Scott could you please link to such gratuitous shots and label as not safe for work.

Yours

Tommy

Just so the ladies don't feel left out...here's a pic of a famous male 'pin up' athlete...

Somebody get me a vibrator, quick...

Somebody get me a vibrator, quick...

Yeah if you hit him round the face enough times with it he might return to normal...;)

Wasn't it a copy of the famous Annie Leibovitz shot of Lance Armstrong?

here

hit him enough times and he becomes

I don't really follow pole vaulting but have to say Allison Stokke is a very attractive woman. if she was dolled up in a lads mag i wouldn't feel the same.

I can't think of any half attractive female athlete who hasn't ended up doing a spread in a lads' mag - sometimes quite literally.

Here's an example - I know nothing about pole vaulting and I've never seen Allison Stokke (below) in action, but the first I ever heard of her was because of this photo.

It is, ultimately, down to the woman in question. Sorry but the responsibility lies with them. We're not talking about 10-year-olds managed by their corrupt parents here.

I am an English male of a certain age and I loathe the whole lads mag culture that exists. I don't give a fuck about that world and I resent being swept presumptuously into such a demographic. I find it sad and contemptible how many girls are happy to get their jugs out for the lads and I feel polluted by the shitness of the culture I live in every time I go to the shops to buy food and have to walk past racks of mags blaring out features gurning on about sex and affairs and tits and botox and the like.

Even so, I shall now be putting some special time aside to watch the polevaulting.

Somebody get me a vibrator, quick...

why, are you going to bum Beardsley with it?

He lives near my parent's house. He once accidentally called my dad asking for a lift from the airport, no joke!

Allison Stokke is a very attractive woman. if she was dolled up in a lads mag i wouldn't feel the same.

Ha...yeah...i'm sure you'd be disgusted right?
None of these women are forced into these shots and magazine spreads...so if you find her attractive in her pole vaulting gear why should she be seen as less attractive just cos she's in some shite lads mag...i'd say good on her for being confident enough in her looks to do it.
If i was that hot i'd get the boys out the barracks for ANY mag...;)

I find it sad and contemptible how many girls are happy to get their jugs out for the lads

Actually, I don't mind it so much. If they didn't exist, then I wouldn't be able to feel smugly superior.

[Edit] Hm just realized that could be misinterpreted. I wasn't trying to say that I feel smugly superior that my jugs are better... believe me, nobody will ever want to feature me on page 3. I just mean that I wouldn't be able to feel smugly superior that I don't get my jugs out.

It's all the mens fault.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/solpda/ukfs_sport/hi/newsid_4485000/4485286.stm

Actually, I don't mind it so much. If they didn't exist, then I wouldn't be able to feel smugly superior.

[Edit] Hm just realized that could be misinterpreted. I wasn't trying to say that I feel smugly superior that my jugs are better... believe me, nobody will ever want to feature me on page 3. I just mean that I wouldn't be able to feel smugly superior that I don't get my jugs out.

^ ha! ha!

btw cg5154 please note I carefully said I find it contemptible "how many" girls get their 'jugs' out...

I can't afford to find any girl contemptible at the moment.

I just had to wade through pages and pages of pornography to find this.

errrr...that was horrible but i found what i was looking for.
alex you're a cock.

It's all the mens fault.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/solpda/ukfs_sport/hi/newsid_4485000/4485286.stm

oh dear. oh dearie me. that doesn't work at all well.

Some men are intimidated by a woman with more brains than them. So I'm sure there are some who are intimidated by a woman with more muscles as well.

That's a genuinely interesting point - I may have read too much into that, but it seems to suggest that the whole point of doing it is some kind of appeasement, aimed at men who feel threatened. If I was in that position, I'd like to say 'bugger it - if you feel threatened, that's your problem not mine.' Do you see where I'm going here? It doesn't seem to be for the 'woman's' benefit - it seems to be to help men feel more comfortable with the fact they're talented and physically fit - like a 'I may be a world class athlete, but don't worry - I'm still a little woman underneath it all...'

I can imagine that many athletes get to the point where they don't want to be regarded merely as machines. Top level sport turns your body shape into whatever maximises performance, and it's not always what is regarded as sexually attractive. Unfortunately we deem muscle development and power to be the signifiers for masculine virility - I could see how a female athlete might want to be considered sexy on her own terms when her dedication has stripped her of much of her "femininity".

[...]Arguably the sexualisation of the image is in the eye of the beholder.

That makes a lot of sense - seems to be a more 'personal' reason for doing it.

I don't really follow pole vaulting but have to say Allison Stokke is a very attractive woman. if she was dolled up in a lads mag i wouldn't feel the same.

There's a story about that - she was only 17 when that shot was taken, and since then she's been leached over constantly. She never wanted the attention and is trying to avoid the media spotlight now - to the point her performance as an athlete is suffering. It's a shame it's come to that, but it's useful to have that human insight into what was, up until recently, a picture of an attractive pole vaulter.

that's very sad if it's true. The fact that her abhorrence of it makes her so much more attractive to me means she now has to contend with two contingents of pathetic loser.