The history of the sneakers
The fact that today in our wardrobe there are such comfortable shoes as sneakers, we owe to a young student from America. It was he who invented the first model. Since then, shoe models have changed annually, but the principle remains the same.
Modern sneakers actually do not have such a rich history. They appeared only recently, in the mid-60s of the last century. And to be more precise, in 1964. The Nike company, which was founded by a young athlete Phil Knight, together with his coach Bill Bowerman, was at the forefront.
Strength in the details
More precisely, they do not own the form of sports shoes, but one small technological detail, without which it is simply impossible to imagine today’s sneakers. We are talking about a small rubber insert under the heel, which radically changed the technique of running. So, one detail gave the world a completely new concept of shoes and glorified the creators.
The notion was not born by itself. She was urgently needed. The fact is that in those days all the runners ran with their backs straight, their knees bent and were forced to place their feet under their thighs. Sports shoes of those times did not have sufficient depreciation. All that separated the foot of the foot from the surface of the earth is a thin fat layer of the human body itself. We can say that it felt like running without shoes at all.
Accordingly, injuries in running disciplines arose with frightening regularity, since the foot reacted to any unevenness of the running surface.
First an idea – then a product
Interestingly, Bill Bowerman himself never engaged in professional running. But at the same time he was a very good coach. At 50, he met a real celebrity – Arthur Lidyard. The latter belongs to the concept of fitness running, which is used by all athletes everywhere today. After talking with Lidyard Bowerman even decided to write a book about the technique of proper running.
And it was during the writing attempts that the American came up with the idea of inserting a small piece of rubber under the heel of the sneaker. A slightly raised back leg, according to Bowerman, was supposed to make it easier to push off the surface. And runners will be able to use the entire surface of the foot, and not just its front part as before.
By the way, Bowerman also owns the idea of the grooved surface of sneakers. Interestingly, he came up with this after long observations of his own wife. And on the creation of a corrugated surface he was prompted by an ordinary waffle iron, which his wife used in the kitchen.
Interestingly, the first model of sneakers was named “Nike Cortes.” The creators compared their shoes with the famous discoverer of South America, which, in fact, destroyed the ancient civilizations of the Indians, and brought new values to the continent.
The international cooperation
At the time of the idea of a new type of sneakers, the creators did not have their own opportunities to produce these products. Therefore, I had to cooperate with already well-known companies. Products of the Japanese company Asics and Saucony shoes were especially popular in those days. It was these companies that helped the young Nike begin their glorious journey.
As a result, everyone remained in the black. The young company received start-up capital, thanks to which over time it took a leading position in this field. And assistant companies gained access to new technologies that are still in use.
