The Sweet Protection Story

The story begins in 1986 with a film. After watching the skateboard drama

Thrashin',

a crew of friends gets totally hooked on the sport. But at that time, skateboarding was illegal in Norway, so the friends had to smuggle hardware, wheels, and mags across the border from Sweden. "We built our own boards," recalls Ståle Møller. "But we didn't just copy the originals; we were all about making our decks better."

That’s how the first skateboards rolled out in the tiny village of Trysil, a town at the foot of the mountains deep in the Norwegian wilderness. They tested their creations on a homemade halfpipe hidden in the forest, constantly fine-tuning their rides in Møller’s dad's garage. Ståle’s first brand was born, and Bushmade Skateboards was characterized by the precautions surrounding their illegal skate scene.

When the ban on skateboarding was lifted in 1989, the tinkerers could finally skate in public. But they didn’t stop at just crafting boards; the crew also dove into designing outdoor gear and building standout helmets. "It bugged us that the existing

gear was holding us back," Møller says.

This was the spark that ignited a one-of-a-kind success story.

The company Sweet Protection was officially founded in 2000, and one of the first moves was to gather more uncompromising Norwegian athletes and get their input on the products. They saw the potential in the helmet prototype that was presented and joined the team. In 2000 and 2001, the Rooster and Strutter helmets dropped and set the tone. With an international team on board, Sweet Protection moved from the local garage to the global scene.

In 2004, the brand secured a Gore‑Tex license, and in 2005 the iconic Trooper Helmet launched alongside Sweet Protection Ski & Snowboard Technical Apparel.

The close collaboration with international athletes to develop these initial products helped Sweet Protection realize the importance of athlete input. Ever since, no Sweet Protection product has left Trysil without the influence of the team.

Sweet Protection has taken racing seriously since the beginning. In 2012, Aksel Lund Svindal joined the team and, on October 27, debuted the hand‑crafted Rooster Corsa at the Alpine World Cup in Sölden, Austria. Built with the same processes used for Formula 1 race cars, this revolutionary ski helmet was constructed from pre‑preg carbon and thermoplastic fibers and baked in an autoclave.

The past few years have been about doubling down – improving what already works, and building new tech to make every Sweet Protection product even better.

In 2019, Sweet Protection launched a new lens tech developed in Trysil. The RIG® Lens Technology was launched together with Sweet Protection’s first goggles: Interstellar, Clockwork and Firewall. That same year, the FIS‑approved Volata Helmet and best‑selling Switcher Helmet were introduced.

The 2Vi® Helmet Technology Platform arrived in the Trooper 2Vi® Mips and Grimnir 2Vi® Mips Helmets in 2021. Two years later, 2Vi® was introduced to the bike category with the Falconer 2Vi® Mips and Bushwhacker 2Vi® Mips Helmets. A major milestone followed as Uno‑X Mobility Cycling earned a Tour de France wildcard – putting Sweet Protection products in cycling’s most prestigious Grand Tour. The next‑gen Volata 2Vi® Mips and Igniter 2Vi® Mips were also introduced that year.

Sweet Protection reignited its MTB presence in 2024, signing Emil Johansson and Vali Höll. That momentum carried into 2025 with the launch of an upgraded full‑face series: the Fixer 2Vi® Mips and Strayer 2Vi® Mips Full Face Helmets.

For the Tour de France 2025, Uno-X Mobility Cycling revealed Project Break Away. Sweet Protection was proud be included in this collaboration with a select group of world-class partners in cycling tech, apparel, and performance innovation. The mission was simple and bold: win a Tour stage and be visible every single day.

The next‑gen Tucker III 2Vi® Mips helmet was born for Project Breakaway. This all-new helmet is engineered for breakaways, solo efforts, and high‑speed finishes. It debuted at the 2025 Tour.

The payoff came fast: Jonas Abrahamsen took a historic stage win at Stage 11 – the first ever for a Norwegian team and his first at the Tour – just weeks after fracturing his collarbone.