The Strength of Mizuno's 'WAVE REBELLION PRO 2' Featuring a Unique Structure Inspired by Sprinting Spikes

The norm of top athletes wearing thin and lightweight running shoes was overturned in 2017, and now thick-soled shoes with carbon plates are chosen by elite runners. Amid intensified competition among manufacturers, Mizuno released a 'heel-less running shoe' in 2022. This daring and innovative new model, focused on forefoot running, has generated a lot of buzz.

So what kind of technology is hidden in Mizuno's latest racing shoes, the 'WAVE REBELLION PRO 2'?

Encouraging & Supporting Natural Forefoot Running

First, let's review the background of the creation of the 'WAVE REBELLION PRO' series.
 
"We have ongoing research in various categories within our company, not just for running. We have many developers creating apparel and equipment, in addition to shoes. Three years ago, a project was initiated to bring together members with knowledge of making people run faster – the SMOOTH SPEED PROJECT. The project's aim is the pursuit of smoothness in speed running. We set out to create from scratch, without being bound by existing methods, incorporating new ideas and readily adopting good ones. This resulted in a new innovation we named the SMOOTH SPEED ASSIST, and the top racing model that adopted this was the WAVE REBELLION PRO," says Shunsuke Aoi, Section Manager of the Performance Running Planning Department at Mizuno Corporation.
 
The SMOOTH SPEED ASSIST is a unique sole structure that Mizuno developed, partially based on its knowledge from developing sprinting spikes. It supports forefoot running and delivers efficient running, consisting of three major elements.