Total Women's Cycling

Assos is a Swiss company which specialises in producing arguably the finest technical racing apparel that a cyclist’s money can buy. It wasn’t always this way though, it used to be all about the bikes. The company’s founder, Tony Maier-Moussa, was always a little ahead of the game where technology was involved. As early as 1976, he was to be found in a Swiss wind tunnel with his prototype carbon fibre bike, looking for ways to improve it. A by-product, almost an after thought, from his time there was that they found that neither wool, nor naked skin were particularly aerodynamic. It was from this starting point that lead the company to develop its first items of lycra cycling wear.

Fast forward to the present day and, from their base in Ticino, Switzerland, Assos is still at the cutting edge of advancements in cycling apparel. Their stuff doesn’t come cheap and they’re not even particularly shy of telling you it might not even last that long due to its ‘high performance DNA’. However, there are legions of devotees waiting to tell you that you can either buy Assos, or you can buy the cheaper stuff, become angry and uncomfortable, then buy Assos. The centrepiece of any Assos collection is their iconic bibshort, which starts at around £130.

Competition-wise, Assos has most famously been associated with the Swiss national cycling team since the 1978 World Championships and the company remains an enthusiastic supporter to this day.