Inspiring Sports Technology
Sports footwear
Adidas Adipure Adapt – adidas barefoot offering
Monday, March 12th, 2012
HYPEBEAST have launched the new Adidas barefoot shoe offering – adidas adiPure Adapt.
Here is a link to the article and their prose:
“Fresh from the innovative adidas adiPure line, the German athletic apparel purveyor and shoemaker presents the super lightweight Adapt model. Made to harness the body’s natural mechanics, this technologically-advanced design offers minimal cushioning between the wearer and the ground, forcing your legs and feet to experience the subtle changes in impact. This in turn will influence the wearer to run on his or her mid or fore-foot, providing a more natural run. A simple yet ingenious vision, the adiPure Adapt is further constructed from the finest materials available, producing a form-fitting mold that weighs in at 4.5 ounces, making it lighter than even Nike’s recently revealed FlyKnit. Be on the lookout for additional release details coming in the near future.”
The bottom line – Reebok fined for poor marketing claims
Tuesday, January 10th, 2012
2011 was an active year in the sporting goods industry, highlighted by the multitude of articles found on the this website. I’m confident that 2012 will see even more exciting articles published, and it is lining up to be an action packed year of sport ahead with the London Olympics no doubt being the pinnacle event on the horizon.
Looking back on the year just gone I believe the stand out headline of 2011 on the sports technology front was the huge $25 million fine imposed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Reebok. The fine was issued due to the advertising campaign for the Reebok ‘EasyTone’ shoe that was reported to improve muscle toning and strength in the leg and bottom region by astronomical margins. This is likely to be the first time in the sporting goods industry that such a phenomenal sum has been imposed for false advertising. I’m sure that the size of the fine was felt even at Reebok (owned by adidas AG, the second largest sporting goods brand in the world) and will send a strong message to the marketing driven sports goods industry that basing results and statistics on insignificant sample populations (in some cases one!) is not acceptable for ethical marketing campaigns.
The fine was large, but it was interesting to note that no such fines have been imposed anywhere else globally, the FTC are an independent agency accountable in the US only. This raises an important question for advertising legislation and management in the UK and the rest of the world. Why is the FTC the only body to have acted on Reebok’s global advertising campaign? On a much more positive note, it is hoped that the long term effect of this fine, is increased research and development funding at sporting goods companies. The message is clear; marketing has to be based on credible facts and figures rather than fantasy, which will incur associated time and resource costs.
Article by Jouni Ronkainen
Paralympian aided by customised footwear in Sports Technology Institute
Tuesday, November 29th, 2011
“It’s not about what I can’t do, it’s about what I can do.” Ben Rushgrove
Film introduced by John Edwards and Ben Rushgrove, with a Q&A after the film.
An inspirational documentary film by Dr John Edwards, Programme Director of The Sports Technology Course and Senior Lecturer in the Wolfson School at Loughborough. The film traces the battles of one of Britain’s leading Paralympic sprinters, Ben Rushgrove.
Following Ben’s story from birth to the Beijing Paralympics, and beyond to the World Championships in New Zealand, BEN is part of the current new wave of documentary films. It is an extraordinary insight into the world of one of Britain’s best hopes for London 2012, as he prepares with his tightly knit training group and their revolutionary coach.
Adidas five fingers shoes- AdiPure
Sunday, November 20th, 2011
With the great success of Vibram FiveFingers it was only going to be a matter of time before one of the big brands created a similar product. The Adidas AdiPure gets over the patent by changing its toe construction – perhaps?
Measure your feet using an iphone app before purchasing online
Thursday, August 18th, 2011
New iphone app to measure your feet before going online. Have a look!
