Women Sports Bra Celebrates 40 Years

Two women were compelled by discomfort experienced during workouts to engage in finding lasting solution that will help their anatomy to be optimally supported as they make various moves. Lisa Lindahl and her friend Polly Smith must figure out a type bra ways to keep their breasts  from hurting as they jog in 1977.



The “Jogbra” as the sports bra was known was birthed when Polly who was at that time making costumes at Vermont University brought in her assistant Hinda Miller into the team.



"I used two bras," Hinda muttered. "You know, everyone has their stories of what they did."


The team bought different bra samples, pulled them apart and attempted to make something different out of them. They were having a hard time figuring it out, each attempt was not giving better result.

"We bought some bras, tore them apart," Miller remembers. "I was taking notes; Lisa was running. 'Does that feel good? Does that feel good?' " she continued.

Lisa Lindahl, left, and Hinda Miller

The eureka moment came,when in a satirical mood Lindahl's husband at then descended their living room stairs hanging two Jockstraps across his chest. Taking this as a cue the three ladies went over to the costume shop of Royal Tyler Theater at the University of Vermont and actually sewed up Jockstraps to make a much comfortable wear. They named the design "Jockbra."  They later found it more appropriate to be called "Jogbra." Their first products can be seen till date bronzed at The Costume shop of the theater at the university, New York Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Smithsonian Institution Central Washington.

The global moment for the sports bra came when female American striker Brandi Chastin scored the winning goal at the 1999 FIFA Women World Cup. In a wave of emotion she tore off her jersey displaying a gleaming black Sports bra she wore underneath. Photos of her went viral and was splashed across front pages of major medias organizations.

Brandi Chastin Scored For USA At 1999 World Cup

Chastain later in an interview said “sports bras are more than clothing — they're an essential piece of equipment.” "I couldn't play without my cleats, and I wouldn't and couldn't play without my sports bra."

In 2001, two decades later Renelle Bratten of Enell Incorporated and Heidi Fisk a freelance apparel designer persuaded Oparah to feature their design in The Oparah Magazine and Oparah Winfrey Show. The market leaped as orders surged. Today the industry tops $9  billion dollars in yearly transactions.



Recent study has show that breasts move in three different planes when a woman is in motion - laterally, vertically and horizontally. A more recent research states that younger women's breasts go mainly up and down while older women of 45 years and above experience more of side to side and in to out movement. The study suggests that the sports bra should be peculiarly designed for both divide, for all ladies to comfortably enjoy and participate in sports.

Our Tags: Jogbra, Sports bra, Oparah, Lisa Lindahl, Hinda Miller, University of Vermont, Smithsonian, New York Metropolitan Museum of Art