With the advent of carbon shoes, now a few years back, along with significantly faster running times came issues: how high can soles actually be and what is the limit of what is permissible and when is that limit crossed? What followed was a time when rules were formed, shoes were banned and developments continued to follow one another. For next season at least, Ironman has again put some shoes on a ‘banned list’. Athletes may be randomly checked for the running shoes they wear.
The shoes in question will not be allowed at any Ironman event, including the World Championship on Kona and World Championship in Nice. In doing so, Ironman simply adheres to the rules set by World Athletics. That means, among other things, that shoes with a sole thickness of more than 40mm are prohibited, as well as shoes with more than one carbon plate.
The following shoes are banned effective immediately:
- Adidas: Adizero Prime X / Adizero Prime X Strung / Adizero Prime X 2 Strung
- Asics: SUPERBLAST / Novablast 4 / Nova Blast 5
- New Balance: FuelCell SuperComp Trainer
- Saucony: Kinvara Pro
