![\"USAC](\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Copy-of-Copy-of-USAC.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nBritish brand overhauls U.S. national kit in debut year of partnership stretching through to L.A. Olympic Games.<\/p>\n
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(Photo: Getty + Caroline Tompkins for Rapha)<\/p>\n
Updated January 16, 2026 08:10AM<\/p>\n
Rapha<\/a> made bold blue and bright red so last year as part of its radical reinvention of USA Cycling<\/a>\u2019s racing apparel.<\/p>\n On Friday, the British brand launched a new kit<\/a> for U.S. riders that rips up the styling script after years of primary verticals.<\/p>\n Baby-blue, white, and orange (or is it red?) dominate a wild new wardrobe that\u2019s sure to spark debate.<\/p>\n According to Rapha, this debut design of its multi-year partnership with USAC shifts the federation\u2019s identity in a way that\u2019s both symbolic and functional.<\/p>\n Road, track, MTB, and BMX athletes will all shoulder the new look through the build toward the 2028 L.A. Olympics, the first U.S. summer Games since Atlanta 1996.<\/p>\n Los Angeles will become only the third city to host three Olympic Games when it welcomes athletes in 2028.<\/p>\n \u201cThe collection draws inspiration from 1984, a watershed moment for American cycling as the home nation took nine medals in Los Angeles,\u201d reads the Rapha kit reveal.<\/p>\n \u201cBlending instantly recognisable elements from the Stars and Stripes with a sense of movement, the \u2018Lightspeed\u2019 pattern is central to the designs. Lightspeed adds to a long tradition of using patterns to express motion and speed in sportswear,\u201d reads the note.<\/p>\n \u201cStripes are also an integral part of both Rapha\u2019s design heritage and the history of cycling apparel.\u201d<\/p>\n Rapha explained USAC\u2019s pale new palette should provide athletes with a performance benefit.<\/p>\n \u201cBalancing intentional aesthetics with functional performance, the pattern responds to a specific request from USA Cycling athletes for a lighter-coloured kit suited to hot conditions,\u201d reads the note.<\/p>\n But while the iconic vertical red, white, and blue stripes are gone, Rapha says its new design is steeped in U.S. culture.<\/p>\n \u201cUSA Lightspeed type appears on the front and back of the jerseys, providing an immediate and easily recognisable way to identify the rider,\u201d reads the note. \u201cThe designs incorporate a collegiate-style typeface, characteristic of American sports, accented with a stripe.\u201d<\/p>\n Rapha\u2019s redesign of the U.S. national kit will no doubt divide opinions, but that\u2019s what the brand does.<\/p>\n Just scroll back through its skateboard-inspired \u201ccrazy-but-cool<\/a>\u201d designs for team EF Education-EastPost for a reminder.<\/p>\n Rapha hunts reboot after financial downturn This is the first year of a collaboration between Rapha and USAC that stretches through the Olympic cycle and into 2029. The British brand came in this winter after Cuore clothed U.S. riders since 2021.<\/p>\n For Rapha, the collaboration marks a pivotal moment as it looks to turn the page on years of financial losses and reputational downturn<\/a>.<\/p>\n Rapha already this month shuttered a number of its flagship \u201cClubhouses\u201d \u2013 including those in Boulder, Chicago, Miami, and Seattle \u2013 and partnered gravel king Cam Jones<\/a> as part of a full business refresh.<\/p>\n The brand\u2019s collaboration with USA Cycling should help it maintain a stake in the North American scene after the termination of its long partnership with the men\u2019s and women\u2019s EF Education-EasyPost WorldTour teams.<\/p>\n CEO Fran Millar reinforced Rapha\u2019s commitment to cycling in the USA in a press note on Friday.<\/p>\n \u201cThis kit represents over a decade of world-class competition and innovation. We\u2019ve left no stone unturned so that when USA Cycling athletes show up for their country, they can stand on the start line with total confidence,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe starting pistol for L.A. has been fired and there is nothing more powerful for a sport than a home Games. The energy, the expectation, the history \u2013 Rapha will support American cycling to seize the opportunity with both hands.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Elouan-Gardon-para-cyclist-1200x687.jpg\"\/)
Rapha has given USAC a new palette and a new set of stripes. (Photo: Caroline Tompkins for Rapha)<\/p>\n
\n![\"Rapha](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/MTB-racer-Kate-Courtney-1200x800.jpg\"\/)
MTB star Kate Courtney does some casual stretches in her new Rapha kit. (Photo: Caroline Tompkins for Rapha)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Elouan-Gardon-track-para-cyclist-1200x1800.jpg\"\/)
Rapha replaces Swiss brand Cuore with deal stretching through 2029. (Photo: Caroline Tompkins for Rapha)
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