You may have seen recently quite a lot of news about some athletes trying to run a marathon very quickly round a race track in Monza, Italy.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below Breaking2 project, Nike produced an elite shoe that these three athletes, Eliud Kipchoge, Zersenay Tadese and Lelisa Desisa, used as they attempted to run a marathon in under two hours (that’s 26.2 miles at the mind-boggling pace of 4.34/mile). It was called the Nike Vaporfly Elite and with all these thing, Nike has also made a very similar, consumer-focused model called the Nike Zoom Fly, pictured above. We managed to get a test pair ahead of launch so we see how it compares to it's more expensive counerpart, the Narrow midfoot wrap with flywire to hold the foot in place% Nike Vaporfly 4.
Nike Vaporfly 4:
-Low weight (249g, men’s UK8)
-Nike Vaporfly 4
-As part of the
-Full length carbon/nylon plate in the midsole to promote energy return
We’ve been out twice in them (including a 10 mile race) and first impressions are that this is avowedly a shoe that delivers on its promise of speed but is best kept for race day. Sometimes new shoe innovations are no more than marketing gimmicks but we could really feel the effect of the midsole plate – not only pushing us through from heel to toe quicker, but providing a stiffer, springier surface from which to toe-off from with each step. It’ll be interesting to see the effect this new sensation has on fatigue levels for our calves and lower legs with more regular wear, as as no time did we really feel as though we could really relax in them.
The ZoomFly will be more thoroughly tested over the coming month, and a full review will appear in an upcoming isue of the magazine, so keep your eyes peeled for that.
Shoe available as of June 8 and will cost £125 - nike.com