Ever since Tigst Assefa wore the Adidas Adios Pro Evo 1 to set a new women’s marathon world record at the Berlin Marathon last year, the battle between Adidas and Nike for the ultimate super shoe has been on.
Nike hit back in October, when the late Kelvin Kiptum broke the men’s marathon world record at the Chicago Marathon wearing the Alphafly 3.
But now, the tables have turned once again. Sunday’s London Marathon proved a momentous victory for Adidas. Not only did the men’s winner Alexander Muyyao – who crossed the finish line in 2:04:01 – sport a pair of the Adios Pro Evo 1s, so too did Kenenisa Bekele in second (2:04:15) and Emile Cairess in third (2:06:16).
For 26-year-old British athlete Cairess, this performance was enough to book him a ticket to Paris. The Pro Evo 1 also marks a notable change of shoe for Cairess, who has previously opted to race in the Adidas Takumi Sen, rather than Adidas’ top-end racers.
‘[The Adidas Takumi Sen] feel like a traditional racer that everyone will feel comfortable with, but they’re a super shoe,’ he previously told RW. ‘You get the best of both worlds’.
Yet this time around, Cairess opted for the Pro Evo 1, which retails for £450, shaving almost two minutes off last year's time of 2:08:07.
In the women's race, Peres Jepchirchir sprinted to victory in 2:16:16 – a new women’s-only world record – followed just behind by Assefa (2:16:23). Both women wore the Pro Evo 1. Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei came in third, sporting the Adios Pro 3.
The Adios Pro Evo 1 features a Lightstrike Foam Pro midsole for greater energy return and has a stack height of 39mm in the heel and 33mm in the forefoot. It's also got a forefoot rocker, designed to trigger forward momentum and increase energy return.
Want to get your hands on a pair? You'll need to set a reminder (not to mention, have deep pockets). Adidas only releases small batches of the Pro Evo 1 to the general public. The next drop is on Thursday 25 April at 9am, exclusively via the Adidas app.
