GAUNTLET

[noun] [C] - a long thick glove, worn for protectionShe put on a helmet and a leather jacket and gauntlets before getting on the motorbike.If you throw down the gauntlet you invite someone to fight or compete with you or show that you are wrong, and if someone picks up the gauntlet they agree to fight or compete with you or show that you are wrong.I had to pick up the gauntlet he had thrown down and prove I could do the job as well as he could.