Nike develops new kicks for athletes with disabilities

Tying and putting on shoes are simple enough activities for most of us but there are those who aren’t able to do this as easily as we do. And that was part of the concept behind a new easy-entry sneaker line from Nike called Flyease. The shoe had been in development for a while under Nike designer Tobie Hatfield. But it was pushed to be brought to the market thanks to a letter to Nike CEO Mark Parker from teenager Matthew Walzer back in 2012.

Walzer suffers from cerebral palsy and when he wrote that letter he was in high school and getting ready or at least thinking about going to college. But with his condition, where one of the effects stiffens the muscles in his body, he couldn’t tie his shoes without help from his loved ones. Plus, he needed shoes that had ankle support. So, he decided to get in touch with the Nike head.

Nike heeded his plea and even got him involved with the development of the shoe. He was given a prototype of the shoe to test out and Walzer said it has given him “the greatest sense of independence and accomplishment” in his life.

Nike refined the shoe a bit and now officially brought it to the market as the Zoom Soldier 8 Flyease. It’s available via Nike’s Web store in the US limited supply. Nike also plans to send it to two US basketball teams playing in the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Los Angeles in late July to see if they can be of use to the athletes with disabilities.

Source: CNET