Sport helmets

In most countries, it is obligatory to wear an approved helmet for sports activities in which there is a potential risk of impact to the head. Every helmet should have a label inside specifying the standards for which it was tested. All Icaro helmets are designed and built to be as light as possible, while optimizing head protection. They are tested by a certification company authorized by the Italian Ministry of Transport and recognized by the German authority TUV.

Sports head protection

The helmet protects the head from impacts by reducing its rate of deceleration. This is achieved by absorbing kinetic energy. In the case of very minor bumps, the inner padding layer does the job. In the case of bigger impacts, deceleration is reduced by the permanent deformation of the inner shell, made in expanded polystyrene. When the amount of energy to be absorbed is much higher, as in a violent impact, the only way of offering protection is by the controlled breakage of the rigid outer shell. Therefore a helmet shell that is too robust will not necessarily offer the best head protection, and on the contrary it may actually worsen the situation by increasing the rate of deceleration through the rebound effect.
The controlled breakage principle determines the optimal shell material and thickness, so that, in the case of a violent impact, the shell is permanently deformed while absorbing the maximum amount of kinetic energy. It is the progressive rupture of the helmet’s outer shell that absorbs the shock and prevent its transmission to the head. For this reason, even though it may seem counter-intuitive, a helmet must be handled with great care. During storage, it must not be exposed to high loads.
In addition, a sport helmet should be light, because a heavy helmet worsens the risk of neck injury on impact due to the increased inertia. All Icaro helmets are carefully engineered to optimize your safety.