ASICS Launches METASPEED™ Sky & METASPEED™ Edge

This 2021, ASICS announced two high-performance running shoes that take the power of human-centric design to the next level.

In an industry first, METASPEED™ Sky and METASPEED™ Edge have each been scientifically designed with a distinct type of running style in mind. The new racing shoes help elite athletes to reach the top of their game, because they don’t have to adjust their running style to fit the shoe anymore; instead, ASICS is giving them high-performance shoes that support their running style.

The shoes were unveiled at ASICS’ Innovation Summit 2021 – the brand’s annual showcase of the very pinnacle of new performance sportswear. This year ASICS hosted its first ever, fully personalized experience, taking guests on an interactive virtual reality journey through the past, present and future of the ASICS story and its longstanding commitment to human-centric design. The experience culminated in the grand reveal of its ground-breaking METASPEED™ innovation – the latest era-defining moment in this journey.

METASPEED™: Taking human-centric design to the next level

METASPEED™ Sky and METASPEED™ Edge see ASICS set the standard for human-centric design in 2021.

The unique design story behind the two new shoes centers on a crucial insight by scientists at the ASICS Institute of Sport Science (ISS). They recognized that the type of shoes powering the world’s fastest were only favoring one type of runner – STRIDE runners – those with a long-loping gait with large periods spent airborne who increase their speed by extending their stride length.

ASICS research however showed that these shoes do not fully support elite athletes who prefer the second major running style – CADENCE, which features smaller steps made while hovering over the ground with minimal up and down motion. Crucially, these runners increase their speed by both extending their stride length and increasing the number of steps they take per minute.

The sports scientists at the ISS were able to measure that athletes perform better when running in shoes that are optimized for their running style. Addressing the challenge, ASICS has created the METASPEED™ Sky for STRIDE runners and METASPEED™ Edge for those with a CADENCE style – both specially optimized and proven to improve runner performance for each of the two major running styles.

The launch of METASPEED™ Sky and METASPEED™ Edge means that runners will no longer having to adjust their running style to suit the shoe they’re wearing. With initial tests from ASICS already showing the METASPEED™ innovation could help reduce the number of steps for a runner to finish a marathon by over 1.2%, it will give all elite runners the opportunity to reach peak performance.

Kenichi Harano, Executive Officer and Senior General Manager at the ASICS Institute of Sport Science said: “The METASPEED™ journey began with the simple insight that athletes run faster in shoes are that specially tailored for them. From here – we got to work. Following a lengthy, meticulous research and development process, METASPEED™ Sky and METASPEED™ Edge were born. Optimized for the two most prevalent running styles in elite runners, they are both at the very pinnacle of running innovation. Our initial tests are already showing them to have an impact on the times of the elite runners’ we’ve been working with. That’s why we’re so excited to be unveiling them to the world today.”