Nike Zoom Vaporfly Elite Flyprint Chicago/NYC Marathon/Tokyo (2019) Sneakers
Colorway: Hyper Violet/Black-Bright Crimson · Style code: BV1385-002 · Release date: March 4, 2019 · Price: $30000 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Nike Zoom Vaporfly Elite Breaking2 Sneakers (880849-600)
Flyprint was the first 3D-printed textile upper used in performance footwear, and it exists because Eliud Kipchoge had one complaint about his racing shoe. Nike scanned his foot, collected pressure data, and printed the upper thread by thread: a process fast enough that a prototype could be produced in well under an hour and a finished iteration in around nine days, against the months a conventional sample takes. Designers worked through thousands of possibilities before selecting the version he raced in. The result was lighter than the upper it replaced, by roughly eleven grams, and more permeable, so moisture could leave the shoe rather than sit in it. Underneath sits the Vaporfly Elite's ZoomX midsole and plate. Hyper violet with crimson is race dressing for a shoe built for a handful of specific marathons rather than for sale in any real quantity.