First bikini emerges

Moments in Time

• On July 5, 1946, French designer Louis Reard unveils a daring two-piece swimsuit he dubbed the “bikini,” inspired by a U.S. atomic test that took place just days earlier off Bikini atoll in the Pacific. Reard kept the mystique alive by declaring that a two-piece suit wasn’t a genuine bikini “unless it could be pulled through a wedding ring.”

• On July 6, 1957, Althea Gibson defeats Darlene Hard 6-3, 6-2 to become the first black tennis player ever to win Wimbledon. Gibson won the U.S. Open in 1958, and was named Female Athlete of the Year by The Associated Press in both years.