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WNPR News sports coverage brings you a mix of local and statewide news from our reporters as well as national and global news from around the world from NPR.

Breasts In The Sports World

EdwinMartinez1, Flickr Creative Commons

You could argue that two trends are in a state of modern collision. Women are hitting puberty earlier than they used to, and their breasts are arriving in larger sizes.  There's a complex matrix of factors making this happen.

Average bra size in the fifties was a B. A British bra manufacturer now makes an L cup. Meanwhile, we're watching an explosion in women's sports driven here in the U.S. at least partly by Title IX.

Why are these two things on a collision course?

Because large breasts are a detriment in just about any sport you can think of: from tennis to mixed martial arts. But nobody ever talked about this -- except in the most salacious terms -- until ESPN - The Magazine recently tackled it.

So today, a little on the history of breasts and breast size, and a lot about breasts and sports.

You can join the conversation. Email colin@wnpr.org, tweet us @wnprcolin, or leave your comments below.

GUESTS:

  • Florence Williams - author of “Breasts: A Natural & Unnatural History”, which won a Los Angeles Times Book Prize earlier this year
  • Amanda Hess - Freelance writer based in Los Angeles
  • Megan Greenwell - Senior Editor at ESPN The Magazine
     
Chion Wolf is the host of Audacious with Chion Wolf on Connecticut Public, featuring conversations with people who have uncommon or misunderstood experiences, conditions, or professions.

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