Episode One: The Sports Bra
The Early Days
The useless “Free Swing Tennis Bra” gets replaced by the “Jog Bra” in the 80s thanks to Lisa Lindahl, Polly Smith and Hinda Schreiber. Doctors Christine Haycock and LaJean Lawson bring bio-mechanics into sports bra development and research in the mid 80s.
Free Swing Tennis Bra by Glamorise.
Credit: Deadspin.
Patent for Lisa Lindahl, Polly Smith and Hinda Schreiber’s “Jog Bra.”
Credit: Eugeine Z. Lindahl, Hinda S. Schreiber, Polly P. Smith, inventor; Playtex Apparel Inc., assignee. Athletic brassiere. U.S. Patent 4,311,150, 1982.
Patent for Lisa Lindahl, Polly Smith and Hinda Schreiber’s “Jog Bra.”
Credit: Eugeine Z. Lindahl, Hinda S. Schreiber, Polly P. Smith, inventor; Playtex Apparel Inc., assignee. Athletic brassiere. U.S. Patent 4,311,150, 1982.
Inventors of the sports bra: Polly Smith, Hinda Miller (nee Schreiber) and Lisa Lindahl.
Credit: WCAX January 2020.
Dr. Christine E. Haycock.
Credit: AMWA 2020.
Dr. Christine E. Haycock.
Credit: Rutgers 2004.
Dr. LaJean Lawson.
Credit: Inside Fashion Design 2018.
Dr. LaJean Lawson.
Credit: Inside Fashion Design 2018.
Sports Bras on the Biggest Stage
The 1984 Olympics and 1999 Women’s World Cup bring the sports bra into the spotlight.
Joan Benoit winning the first women’s Olympic Marathon in 1984, showing off a white sports bra.
Credit: Tony Duffy / Getty Images.
Brandi Chastain after kicking the game winning penalty kick of the 1999 Women’s World Cup against China, leading US to victory 5 - 4.
Credit: AP Photo / The San Francisco Examiner, Lacy Atkins, File.
Breasts are a Non-Issue
The invention of the encapsulation sports bra, Enell, allows women with large breasts to pursue an athletic life. Sports bras take the very things that once made it difficult for women to play sports, breasts, and make them a non-issue.
Renelle Braaten, founder of Enell.
Credit: Enell.
Patent for Enell Sports Bra.
Credit: Renelle Braaten, inventor. Sports bra. U.S. Patent 4,816,005, 1989.
Patent for Enell Sports Bra.
Credit: Renelle Braaten, inventor. Sports bra. U.S. Patent 4,816,005, 1989.
Enell sports bras originally came in reusable cups. Linda Cetrone Levy showing off a 2005 Enell sports bras.
Credit: Billings Gazette.
Enell sports bra featured in a 2004 issue of O Magazine.
Credit: Enell.
Drew Barrymore and Kathy Kaehler’s endorsement of Enell sports bras in the Jan/Feb 2000 issue of Women’s Sport & Fitness magazine.
Credit: Enell.
Oh Wikipedia…
The Wikipedia page for the sports bra mis-classifies a swimsuit as a sports bra. Oy vey.
Wikipedia doesn’t know what a sports bra is and isn’t.
Credit: Wikipedia.
All of the sources
14 Years Ago Brandi Chastain Changed U.S. Soccer – For the Win
From the Jockbra to Brandi Chastain: The History of the Sports Bra – WBUR
A Comparison of Eight Selected Sports Bras – by LaJean R. Lawson
Creators of the Sports Bra Will Join Inventors Hall of Fame – Forbes
Christine E. Haycock, MD 1924 Papers – Rutgers Health Sciences: History of Medicine
Busty Business: Enell Owner and Founder Discusses Her Bra Invention – The Havre Herald
Oprah Show Mention Prompts Rush on Havre Company's "No Bounce" Bra – Billings Gazette