After three Vermont friends sewed two jockstraps, the sports bra was a hit in the 1970s and 80s.
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Title IX of The Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits discrimination on grounds of sex at schools or other educational programs. The passage of this law increased women’s and young girls’ participation in sports — and soon they needed a bra to support and protect their breasts.
According to Deadspin, the “Free Swing Tennis Bra” is the first bra that was commercially available. It was introduced in 1975 by Glamorise Foundations Inc. It was designed for active women but didn’t offer the support or structure necessary to perform high-impact activities such as running.
Following the discovery of Lindahl’s husband’s jockstrap wrapped around his chest, in 1977 Lisa Lindahl and Polly Smith, jogger, came up with an idea for an athlete bra. According to photos shared by Defector Smith, he cut and sewn two jockstraps together. This created a bra featuring wide straps as well as a criss-crossback.
Lindahl said that she ran in the jockstrap contraption the day after and that it was the one that would work. This was on an episode of “Outside”, which was broadcast in 2017.
The “jockbra”, later called “jogbra,” was the original sports bra. Its inventors were then inducted into the US National Investors Hall of Fame, BBC reports.