Chapter 1
The birth of the rubber sole
Chapter 2
The court meets the street
Chapter 3
The global design revolution
Chapter 4
The modern hype machine
Ch 3 · The global design revolution
adidas Lightweight Knit Revolution
Knit it light, knit it light! / A single thread is taking flight.
adidas Tokyo boutique atmos pioneered the modern sneaker collaboration model in 2000, partnering with Nike on wild designs that sparked overnight queues.
Quiz
What is the name of the backstreet Tokyo fashion district that birthed modern streetwear and sneaker collaboration culture?
Quiz
Which Tokyo sneaker boutique, founded in 2000, became famous for its exclusive Nike collaborations featuring animal prints?
adidas Paris’s Centre Pompidou inspired the visible gas capsule inside the 1987 Air Max.
Quiz
Which Parisian building's 'inside-out' architecture inspired Tinker Hatfield to expose the Air Max air bubble?
Quiz
What was the profession of Tinker Hatfield before he became Nike's most famous sneaker designer?
Fun Fact
Inside-out inspiration: Tinker Hatfield faced intense corporate pushback at Nike for exposing the air bubble, with colleagues fearing it would pop easily.
Quiz
What shape was the signature rubber pump button located on the tongue of the original Reebok Pump?
Quiz
Which NBA player famously pumped up his Reeboks before winning the 1991 Slam Dunk Contest?
Quiz
In which year did the lightweight knit sneaker revolution begin with the launch of Flyknit?