The ‘super shoes’ have revived debate on technological doping at Tokyo Olympics 2020.
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Athletes have delivered extreme performances that have been partly attributed to these advanced shoes, as well as a high-tech track that they ran on.
Critics, however, allege that using the super footwear, first developed by the American multinational Nike and now adopted by several competitors, amounts to ‘technological doping’.
The Vaporfly series of shoes by Nike, lab tests have shown subsequently, helps an athlete save four per cent more energy than a competitor who does not wear them.
Later, track spikes — shoes that have spikes underneath to give runners a grip — also became more technologically advanced.
Unlike traditional spikes, which have tried to lessen the amount of midsole foam in order to decrease weight and energy absorption, super spikes have a better foam that is able to return as much as 80 to 90 per cent of energy to the athlete– thus acting like a spring in every step.
The carbon-fibre plate in super footwear is believed to allow athletes a more effective push-off.
World Athletics, the governing body for track and field sports, approves “super shoes”, but with regulations on foam thickness, as well as other parameters.
