Straight Talk with Kipchoge & Hassan! What Do Top Athletes Look for in Shoes?

In 2017, at the Monza Circuit in Italy, 'Breaking2' was held. Eliud Kipchoge wore Nike's thick-soled shoes to set an unofficial men's marathon record of 2 hours, 0 minutes, and 25 seconds. Subsequently, long-distance running shoes with carbon plates became mainstream.

Kipchoge later set a time of 1 hour, 59 minutes, and 40 seconds in a special race in 2019, and a new world record of 2 hours, 1 minute, and 9 seconds at the Berlin Marathon in 2022.
 
Sifan Hassan, who won gold medals in the 5000m and 10,000m events, and a bronze medal in the 1500m at the Tokyo Olympics, won the London Marathon, her marathon debut, in April 2023, and then won the Chicago Marathon in October with the second-best time in world history of 2 hours, 13 minutes, and 44 seconds. What kind of features do these top male and female athletes, who also participated in the recent Tokyo Marathon, look for in their shoes?

What Kind of Shoe is the 'Nike AlphaFly 3'?

Currently, both Kipchoge and Hassan are choosing the 'Nike AlphaFly 3' for marathon races. Kipchoge won a record fifth time at the Berlin Marathon in September 2023 while wearing a prototype of the 'AlphaFly 3'.