Nike super-light Flywire track shoes to make Olympics debut
Already creating quite a buzz in the industry with its revolutionary lightweight construction, the Flywire design is said to be inspired by the cables from a suspension bridge. It basically makes use of a strong Vectran thread arranged in a fan-shaped pattern at anchor points around the shoe. The result is a shoe that is extremely light, yet reportedly cheap and easy to manufacture.
But, just how light are the new Flywire track shoes? The Zoom Matumbo will be Nike's lightest distance track shoes at about 96.3g per pair, while the Zoom Victory Spikes for middle distance events like the 800m and 5,000m will weigh just 90.7g. For the record, Michael Johnson's famed pair of golden track shoes at the 1996 Atlanta Games tipped the scales at about 112g, which is lightweight even by today's standards.
Nike has made the Flywire technology available commercially with the recent launch of its Flywire series of running shoes in the US. The company also plans to release the track shoes to consumers later in October.
About the author
A Back to the Future fan, Reuben Lee secretly hopes the flux capacitor works so he can go back in time to tell the younger him to invest in Google shares. This former engineering graduate stumbled from varsity straight into games and tech writing just for the fun at CNET Asia. He found it so much fun, he stayed on for the next 11 years. You can also catch this Senior Editor for chats on all things Japan, the manga One Piece, Star Wars, Liverpool and football, and racing games.
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