This is my adidas

I feel honoured to announce that adidas originals came to visit me at home to check out my adidas for their 

confirmed app.

It's always a challenge to choose a few favorites for short formats such as this, so I went for some vintage, 

some retro, some running, some basketball and I hope you enjoy the selection I made.

You can watch the whole video on the confirmed app or below:

Soled Out is out now

Big up to Woody for this amazing new gem.

900 vintage sneaker ads.

720 insane pages.

100 athletes.

13 action-packed chapters.

12 years in the making.

As the title suggests, SOLED OUT is an exploration of the print advertising produced to sell 
sneakers in the 20th century. From McEnroe and MJ to Hulk Hogan and Sigourney Weaver, 
this is the 20th-century sports industry expressed in its own grandiose prose and 
muscular image. Work on SOLED OUT started back in 2009, so you could say it has been 
more than a decade in the making, though it was always in brief respites between projects. 
To quote the man himself.

"Only masochists and hardcore completists make books this big."

• Format: Hardback

• Size: 315 x 230 mm (12 3/8 x 9 in)

• Pages: 720 pp

• Illustrations: 900 illustrations

• ISBN: 9781838663674

Nike Air Jordan II white red unreleased Prototype

Jordan Brand has some beautiful archive pictures online and I love these unreleased

Jordan II prototypes from 1987, that give a bit more insight into the development

process.

What an interesting mix of elements.
I see parts from the Nike Air Ship, Delta Force, Logo embedding like on the windward 

AC or some Cross Trainers, a Jordan 1 bottom Sole (?) plastic eyelets like on the AFII 

or Solo Flight and a very Court Wimbledon AC like midsole…

That collar perforation also resembles an aesthetic used on future Flights. 

CryptoKicks - the future is here

Nike holds patent for blockchain-based sneakers called ‘CryptoKicks’

The US Patent Office has issued sportswear brand Nike‘s patent

for its blockchain-compatible sneakers dubbed “CrpytoKicks.”
The patent outlines a system whereby blockchain can be used to attach

cryptographically secured digital assets to a physical product, in this 

case a sports shoe.

Adidas Queen

I am always searching for (to me) unknown models and the 

adidas archive is the perfect place for finding special gems and 

background information. I could spend years digging through 

these shelves without ever getting bored of this infinite treasure 

trove and I dearly miss the days when it was accessible online. 

At my last visit the archive management showed me this shoe 

for personal reference; The Adidas Queen. 

A hi-top indoor training shoe for women from 1987.

What a sweet gesture! Thank you guys, you really hit the nail 

on the head.

The Adidas Archive Book

After all the years of hard work it's finally here:
The Adidas Archive Book.
The adidas story is one of groundbreaking designs, epic moments
and conceiving the all-around sports shoe, worn by the likes of 
Lionel Messi, Run DMC, and Madonna. A mecca for sneaker fans, 
this book presents adidas’s history through more than 350 pairs of 
shoes from the “adidas Archive”, including one-of-a-kind originals, 
vintage models, never-before-seen prototypes, and designs from 
Stella McCartney, Yohji Yamamoto, Parley for the Oceans, and 
more.

Nike OTC Meeting 2020

Here are finally all the pictures of this year's OTC Meeting in Shibuya.
This get-together is easily my sneaker highlight of the year, thanks to all 
organizers and participants for making it happen! I had a blast nerding
out over all these vintage gems. My favorite this year might have been the
following 'Made in Japan' MVP Cotton Mesh Hi, but also the Delta Force AC 
Snakeskin, that Tailwind display and those on foot Double Team Hi's!
But also the details on Nike Chrominicles productions amaze me every 
year (check out those soles and the cracked collar on the miniAlohas). 
Plus we got a star visit by Mark aka Mr Sabotage who blessed us with a 
remake of the Michael Jordan Rehab Shoe as well as his presence, 
kindness and generosity. 
Unfortunately I had been sick the whole week prior to the meeting and 
wasn't able to stay for dinner afterwards, but next year I am hoping to re-
join also with Nic, Jumi, Sonia, Cyril, Driss, Hatu and many more for that 
lovely after-party. 
See you in 2021 guys!

All pictures after the jump

Vintage Kid Power Ronald McDonald Sneaker

On ebay right now

Sole Origins

I had the pleasure to be featured in the current episode of Complex's 
Sole Origins!




I had a great time with the @calico_incand @zen team filming this and 
really like the outcome. 
Great job @justinrching@dannyleeworks @karimwasabi @budgerodriguez 
and everyone involved in this!
Although you hear me talking about Hikmet’s store being one of the first 
where sneaker enthusiasts would hang out, I actually was talking about
@mad.flavor.sneakerstore when I made this statement, but it must have 
gotten mixed up in postproduction.
Hikmet‘s influence on putting Berlin on the world sneaker map is obviously 
undeniable and beautifully described in the episode.
Unfortunately Niklas the owner of Mad Flavor (and former employer of 
Hikmet) did not make the final cut, but I think it is vital to pay respect to the 
people who came before this sneaker culture 
turned mainstream and paved the road for current business, like
@mad.flavor.sneakerstore or Downstairs did.
None of us featured here got where we are, without building on what 
people who came before us created and cultivated. And none of us would 
be where we are today, without the support of many individuals who don’t 
take the spotlight. So thank you to all those hard working and passionate 
characters behind the scene - you are sneaker culture!

Puma History; The Olympic Games in Munich, 1972

At the 1972 Olympia Massacre in Munich, the german police failed 

miserably to free Israeli hostages from the Palestinian terrorists group 

„Black September", partly because they did not ban the press from 

the olympic village and therefore the eight terrorists were able to 

watch the police approach the building on TV. 

Maybe you have seen pictures of those Olympics, maybe you are even 

old enough to have seen it live on TV. Apart from all the atrocities and 

failures that the worlds witnessed that day, a certain detail always 

made me wonder; why did the police team wear Puma tracksuits 

during their deployment on the olympic campus? 

Officially, the attack of the 'Black September' in is considered to be the 

birth of the GSG 9th Infantry Division in the Federal Republic of 

Germany. The truth however is, that this elite reaction force already 

existed in Germany in 1972, but was not used in Munich because it was 

to remain secret during the Cold War. (german source)

Part of the police team that conducted the mission in Munich, was the 

then 24 year old border patrol official Helmut Fischer from Herzogen-

aurach. When they arrived at the olympic village, they wanted to blend 

in to not instantly alarm the terrorists, so Fischer (who had good contacts 

to Puma being from the same town as the renowned sports brand) ran 

down to the Puma Shop and asked employee and friend Irmgard Hacker 

to equip the team with some tracksuits. (german source)

Fischer later became head of advertisement at Puma, celebrated his 40th 

anniversary as an employee of the company in 2018 and is senior advisor 

and in charge of the archive today.