British Cycling and Kalas Sportswear, which has supplied the Great Britain Cycling Team’s kit since the start of last year, have unveiled a new look for the national team that will debut at the UCI Road World Championships in Innsbruck-Tirol next week.
The governing body says that the kit – which has a predominantly red and white colour scheme on the jersey, as well as the logos of sponsors HSBC UK complemented by navy blue shorts – draws its inspiration from one that appeared in 1959.
A red stripe appears across the chest, together with the letters GBR – the country’s three-letter UCI code – which are in a custom typeface.
Stephen Park, Great Britain Cycling Team Performance Director, said: “High performance clothing is crucial to delivering results in today’s world of competitive cycling, so having a clothing supplier with such in-depth knowledge and a high level of service is invaluable to the Great Britain Cycling Team.
“The riders are at the heart of everything we do, so it was important for us that they played a key role in designing a kit that was bespoke to the squad, that looks good and that they were proud to wear without compromising on performance or quality.
“I look forward to seeing the collection on its first outing at the UCI Road World Championships in Innsbruck in the coming days,” he added.
Riders were consulted on the development of the kit, including Dani Rowe, who said: “Having us all involved in the design process was a great idea. Our ideas were listened to and I’m really pleased with the outcome – it’s a modern twist on a classic design and will keep us visible in the peloton when we race. I’m looking forward to putting our new kit through its paces in Austria.”
The kit will be used across all disciplines and Josef Filip, CEO of Czech Republic-based Kalas Sportswear, said: “We’ve been developing premium cycling kit for 27 years, and this project is one of our favourites to date.
“By working closely with British Cycling and the Great Britain Cycling Team on this new collection, I’m confident that we’ve produced a fresh spin on an iconic look that will be loved by fans and the team alike. Being able to wear a kit designed by cycling greats during the rides and races gives it a real edge.”
The kit can be bought online from Kalas here.
Born in Scotland, Simon moved to London aged seven and now lives in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds with his miniature schnauzer, Elodie. He fell in love with cycling one Saturday morning in 1994 while living in Italy when Milan-San Remo went past his front door. A daily cycle commuter in London back before riding to work started to boom, he's been news editor at road.cc since 2009. Handily for work, he speaks French and Italian. He doesn't get to ride his Colnago as often as he'd like, and freely admits he's much more adept at cooking than fettling with bikes.