It is somewhat ironic that only days after a new study proved that women are being put off doing sport because of their breasts, we learn female Wimbledon players may have had to do away with their bras.
According to good old Pat Cash, who rightly thinks this situation is “ridiculous”, some women players at this year’s tournament have been forced to play bra-less following a clamp down on the all-white clothing rule.
"Some of the girls have been told to go back and change their bras and tops because they had slight colour on them,” Cash told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"I believe some of the girls didn’t have suitable sports bras and had to go without them. It has absolutely gone ridiculous."
I’m sorry. Did I just read that correctly? Play tennis sans brassiere? And professional tennis at that in front of a huge crowd? Well that might be just about OK for a few very lucky women on the tour, who aren’t so well endowed up top, but for most females, regardless of whether they are an athlete or not – that’s just tantamount to physical abuse.
This week a survey by the University of Portsmouth Breast Health Research Group found that nearly one in five women say their breasts are a barrier to exercise – because either they can’t find the right sports bra or they live in fear of the embarrassment that excessive breast movement can prompt.
While Naomi Broady, the British tennis player who lost in the second round on Wednesday, has managed to play not wearing a bra this week, (brilliantly no one knows whether she was forced out of it or not), the thought of playing without one, just from how it will look, is enough to put most women off their strawberries and cream. There are enough things already bouncing around on a tennis court thank you very much. (A quick straw poll of the office has already confirmed that shock, horror, most men hold entirely the opposite view).
But aesthetics aside, it just bloody hurts to do any form of sporting activity without support. And no, to all the wise guys reading this, sex doesn’t count. I have written before of my disdain for bras - but I am truly grateful for them during physical excerise, despite sports bras' many flaws.
Moreover, playing sport without the correct support for one’s breasts can actually be harmful to women’s bodies.
Professor Joanna Scurr, who led the Portsmouth University Research Group in Breast Health, says that if women do not wear the right sports bra, they risk harming the fragile Cooper's ligaments which, once damaged, are irreparable.
Well I shudder to think as to what she would make of the total pedants holding court in SW19.
Prof Scurr continues: "When the breasts are not supported appropriately and there is tension on the ligaments and skin of the breast, it can result in strain and over time this may lead to a stretching of the breasts' natural support, which could lead to permanent breast damage.”
Quite. And while we await to hear which players were fell victim to this new clampdown (I’m sure this is the best assignment male sports reporters down at Wimbledon have ever been given), I am packing my slightly greying sports bra for a tennis match with my husband later on today – much to the immense gratitude of the people down at our local park.
According to good old Pat Cash, who rightly thinks this situation is “ridiculous”, some women players at this year’s tournament have been forced to play bra-less following a clamp down on the all-white clothing rule.
"Some of the girls have been told to go back and change their bras and tops because they had slight colour on them,” Cash told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"I believe some of the girls didn’t have suitable sports bras and had to go without them. It has absolutely gone ridiculous."
I’m sorry. Did I just read that correctly? Play tennis sans brassiere? And professional tennis at that in front of a huge crowd? Well that might be just about OK for a few very lucky women on the tour, who aren’t so well endowed up top, but for most females, regardless of whether they are an athlete or not – that’s just tantamount to physical abuse.
This week a survey by the University of Portsmouth Breast Health Research Group found that nearly one in five women say their breasts are a barrier to exercise – because either they can’t find the right sports bra or they live in fear of the embarrassment that excessive breast movement can prompt.
While Naomi Broady, the British tennis player who lost in the second round on Wednesday, has managed to play not wearing a bra this week, (brilliantly no one knows whether she was forced out of it or not), the thought of playing without one, just from how it will look, is enough to put most women off their strawberries and cream. There are enough things already bouncing around on a tennis court thank you very much. (A quick straw poll of the office has already confirmed that shock, horror, most men hold entirely the opposite view).
But aesthetics aside, it just bloody hurts to do any form of sporting activity without support. And no, to all the wise guys reading this, sex doesn’t count. I have written before of my disdain for bras - but I am truly grateful for them during physical excerise, despite sports bras' many flaws.
Moreover, playing sport without the correct support for one’s breasts can actually be harmful to women’s bodies.
Professor Joanna Scurr, who led the Portsmouth University Research Group in Breast Health, says that if women do not wear the right sports bra, they risk harming the fragile Cooper's ligaments which, once damaged, are irreparable.
Well I shudder to think as to what she would make of the total pedants holding court in SW19.
Prof Scurr continues: "When the breasts are not supported appropriately and there is tension on the ligaments and skin of the breast, it can result in strain and over time this may lead to a stretching of the breasts' natural support, which could lead to permanent breast damage.”
Quite. And while we await to hear which players were fell victim to this new clampdown (I’m sure this is the best assignment male sports reporters down at Wimbledon have ever been given), I am packing my slightly greying sports bra for a tennis match with my husband later on today – much to the immense gratitude of the people down at our local park.
