Jock-Strap

A jockstrap is an athletic supporter with a front pouch and two straps around the buttocks, designed to support and protect the genitals during sport. It was invented in 1874 in Boston by C.F. Bennett for bicycle riders navigating rough cobblestone streets. Starting in the 1950s, as a hyper-masculine look took hold in gay fashion, gay men embraced the jockstrap and it gained a fetish and fashion status well beyond athletics. Its design lifts and covers the front while leaving the buttocks bare, which is central to its appeal. Today it is worn at bars, clubs, and parties, and as everyday underwear, remaining one of the most recognizable symbols of queer masculinity.