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Eliud Kipchoge has rejected suggestions that the next generation of groundbreaking Nike shoes violate the spirit of the sport, although he has admitted that they could give him a big advantage in Sunday’s London Marathon.
The world record holder confirmed that he would wear the Alphafly Next% s, which resemble platform shoes and are said to improve running economy by 5-8%, for the first time in an official race.
The controversial running shoes have been called for a ban, especially after the Kenyan wore them to become the first person to break the two-hour barrier at an unofficial event in Vienna last October.
However, since then World Athletics has ruled that such shoes are legal as long as their stack height does not exceed 40mm and other rules are obeyed. Kipchoge insisted it was time for critics of shoe technology to “open their hearts and move on.”
“We live in the 21st century and we must embrace change,” he said. “Development goes hand in hand with technology. The shoe is good. We are virtually holding a press conference, isn’t that technology? We should embrace technology and marry technology. “
The Alphaflys are the latest in a line of Nike sneakers, employing a carbon plate and special foam, that have helped the company’s athletes dominate the marathon for the past four years. When asked if that was fair, Kipchoge was unequivocal. “Of course I do,” he replied.
When asked if it was unfair to non-Nike sponsored athletes, he added: “It’s good for Nike. On the other hand, it is business. It’s good for Nike to be much higher than other companies when it comes to technology. “
However, Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele, who is also sponsored by the American shoe giant, admitted that he would not wear the Alphaflys on Sunday because he had been injured in training.
“It’s really difficult to fit into these shoes, especially with sprint training,” said Bekele, who missed Kipchoge’s world marathon record of 2:01:39 by just two seconds at the Berlin Marathon last year.
“Several times I had some minor injuries, like a muscle strain. Because the shoe is not stable under the foot. It really has no form. It is very smooth. The muscle needs to adapt to the movement below it. It’s really hard.
“No one can wear the shoes,” added Bekele, who said he would wear the lower-spec Nike Next4% s instead. “For walking or for a normal life, it’s okay, you can do it. But putting hard work on the shoe is really difficult.
“Eliud already had these shoes a year ago. All the other athletes we got about six months ago. Many of us were locked up at home. Due to Covid you could not train as you wanted. So I had some problems with the shoes because I couldn’t adapt. “
“Your muscles have to adapt to these shoes. It is not like a normal shoe, it is really difficult. I tried to research it with other athletes and most of them also had problems with these shoes. “
A spokesperson for the London Marathon confirmed that shoe checks have been carried out on all companies since Monday. He also indicated that Kipchoge’s shoes complied with the regulations.
