Did you notice how most sneaker websites were flooded with Nike news today? Sneaker News looked more like Nike News, Nice Kicks looked more like Nice Swoosh and Hypebeast was still, umh, hypebeast. If you're on twitter as much as I am and you follow the right people then you would've seen #NT Hall of Famer Russ Bengston tweet this shoe and a bunch of other interesting stuff.

I'd like to apologize in advance to my readers for this long entry. I went stupid and just copy pasted the press kit that was emailed to me. Don't worry though, you'll be smarter than me after you're done reading everything (not really). All I can say is Summer 2012 will be a good one. My body is ready for the Olympic Air Force 180 and More Uptempo. 

Enjoy!

NIKE UNVEILS PERFORMANCE INNOVATIONS FOR SUMMER COMPETITIONS

NEW YORK, 22 February 2012 – NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) announced today a series of cutting-edge, lightweight performance innovations designed for the track, the basketball court and beyond for this summer. Multiple products were unveiled, ranging from Nike Flyknit footwear, to the Nike Hyper Elite basketball uniform to the next evolution of NIKE Lunarlon footwear.

NIKE, Inc. President & CEO Mark Parker was joined by one of the most iconic track and field athletes in history, Carl Lewis, and other great athletes including Deron Williams (New Jersey Nets and 2008 USAB team), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever and USAB team member in 2004 and 2008), Carmelita Jeter (current 100m World Champion and the fastest woman on earth today), Walter Dix (World Championship silver medalist), Anastasiya Kapachinskaya (Russian sprinter and 400m Bronze Medalist, 2011 World Championships), Sergey Shubenkov (Russian European U23 champion hurdler) and Abdi Abdirahman (US Men’s Marathoner and seven-time US Champion) to unveil Nike’s newest innovations at a global event in New York City.

“Today we’ve unveiled technology we believe has the potential to change sports performance. Nike has always been committed to bringing the best innovations to athletes at every level and we’ve done that today in a powerful way,” said Parker. “The Nike Flyknit upper redefines the idea of running footwear: Lightweight and virtually seamless, it acts like a second skin for the foot and is precision engineered in one piece and one layer to minimize waste, dramatically changing how footwear is designed and manufactured.”

Nike’s products include:

Nike Flyknit: Nike Flyknit revolutionizes running by rethinking shoe construction from the ground up Informed by athlete insights and employing a new proprietary technology. Yarns and fabric variations are precisely engineered only where they are needed for a featherweight, formfitting and virtually seamless upper. With all the structure and support knitted in, the Nike Flyknit Racer’s upper and tongue weigh just 34 grams (1.2 ounces). The whole shoe weighs a mere 160g (5.6 ounces) for a size 9, 19% lighter than the Nike Zoom Streak 3, a shoe worn by first, second and third place athletes in the men’s marathon at the 2011 World Championships.

Nike Flyknit upper is also engineered for precision fit, creating a feeling of a second skin. NIKE has created an everyday running shoe, the Nike Flyknit Trainer+, which at 220 grams or 7.7 ounces, will bring the weight and fit benefits of Nike Flyknit to runners of all levels.

Nike Hyper Elite Basketball Uniform: Unveiled in USA Basketball colors, the Nike Hyper Elite shorts weigh five ounces while the NIKE authentic basketball jersey, NIKE’s lightest jersey ever, features a breathable and durable design with striking Nike Aerographics visual design. The men’s jersey is made of approximately 96% polyester fabric derived from recycled plastic bottles while the short is 100% recycled polyester fabric. Nike uses an average of 22 recycled plastic bottles per uniform reflective of NIKE’s commitment to environmentally-sustainable design. The uniform will be worn by national basketball teams including USA, China, and Brazil in addition to teams attempting to qualify.

Nike Hyperdunk: Part of a pack of four shoes (including running, men’s training and women’s training), this shoe is part of the Nike Lunarlon Collection. An innovative combination of advanced NIKE Flywire technology and a basketball-specific NIKE Lunarlon cushioning system, this lightweight, more supportive, durable and breathable shoe is expressly designed to meet the demands of elite basketball players worldwide.

Re-engineered NIKE Lunarlon foam is 30% lighter than Phylon (the standard foam used in sports shoe midsoles), and is designed to vary in density, being thicker where required for stability, but softer for absorbing impact in key areas. The uppers of the Nike Hyperdunk feature the most advanced version of NIKE Flywire, which uses high-strength cables constructed from a thin core encased in a flexible woven sheath. These responsive cables are loose when at rest and dynamic in motion, tensing to help stabilize the foot as required.

The Lunarlon Collection will be available at retail beginning July 15th, the Nike Flyknit footwear on July 27th and the Nike Basketball products on August 1st.

FACT SHEETS

Nike Flyknit

NIKE has engineered knit for performance to create running footwear that features only the essentials. Employing a new technology called Nike Flyknit, yarns and fabric variations are precisely engineered only where they are needed for a featherweight, formfitting and virtually seamless upper.

With all the structure and support knitted in, the Nike Flyknit Racer’s upper and tongue weigh just 34 grams (1.2 ounces). The whole shoe weighs a mere 160g (5.6 ounces) for a size 9, which is 19% lighter than the Nike Zoom Streak 3, a shoe worn by first, second and third place athletes in the men’s marathon at the 2011 World Championships.

While reducing shoe weight is one aspect of helping runners, the Nike Flyknit upper is also engineered for a precision fit, creating a feeling of a second skin.

An additional environmentally sustainable benefit to Nike Flyknit is that it reduces waste because the one-piece upper does not use the multiple materials and material cuts used in traditional sports footwear manufacture. Nike Flyknit is truly a minimalist design with maximum return.

The inspiration for Nike Flyknit was born from the common runner feedback, craving a shoe with the qualities of a sock: a snug fit that goes virtually unnoticed to the wearer.

But all the features that make a sock desirable have proven to make them a bad choice for a running upper. An inherently dynamic material like yarn generally has no structure or durability.

NIKE embarked on a four-year mission of micro-engineering static properties into pliable materials. It required teams of programmers, engineers and designers to create the proprietary technology needed to create the knit upper.

The next steps were to map out where the specific yarn and knit structures were needed. Applying 40 years of knowledge from working with runners, NIKE refined the precise placement of support, flexibility and breathability – all in one layer.

The result is precision engineering in its purest form, performance on display. Every element has a purpose: resulting in one of the lightest, best fitting running shoes NIKE has ever made.

The Nike Flyknit Racer is the marathon shoe that the world’s best runners from all over the world, including those from Kenya, Great Britain, Russia and the US will wear in this spring’s marathons and in London this summer.

With the knowledge gained from working with the worlds best marathon runners, NIKE has also created an everyday running shoe, the Nike Flyknit Trainer+, which at 220 grams or 7.7 ounces, will bring the weight and fit benefits of Nike Flyknit to runners of all levels.

Both models will be available for all runners this coming July.

Nike Flyknit will debut in a collection that celebrates the performance attributes of the technology, while at the same time hints at its future capabilities – HTM Flyknit.

Nike HTM Flyknit Collection

Nike Flyknit will debut in a collection that celebrates the performance attributes of the technology, while at the same time hints at its future capabilities - HTM Flyknit.

HTM signifies the ongoing collaboration between style leader Hiroshi Fujiwara, Nike design legend Tinker Hatfield and Nike Inc. CEO and designer Mark Parker.

Since 2002, the three have worked together to amplify new innovations, reinterpret existing designs and explore concepts that take the brand to new places.

There are three shoes in the HTM Flyknit collection:

HTM Racer

Identical to the Nike Flyknit Racer in function, it features the colors of the US Track and Field team. This version made its competition debut at the US Track & Field trials in January 2012.

 HTM Trainer+

The HTM Trainer+ pushes the boundaries of what Nike Flyknit could do and showcases the aesthetic possibilities of fabrics and colors and patterns.

Pushing the technology in new ways, the HTM Trainer+ also integrates the tongue for an enhanced fit and shows off the personalization potential of knit, with knit-in the numbers of each of the collectibles, 1 to 100.

HTM Trainer+

The HTM Trainer+ features a more subtle complexity with a heathered, grey speckle in the fabric. It also features the Lunarlon midsole for all-day comfort.

Nike Sportswear for Basketball

In the summer 1992 fifteen men left the United States and headed east in search of gold. Their destination was Barcelona. Their calling was Basketball. Their's was a unique journey. The squad was the first USAB team to feature active professional basketball players and naturally were considered huge favorites to finish that summer with gold around their necks. They were referred to, and forever will be, as The Dream Team. Widely considered one of the strongest teams assembled in any sport they won every game they played by an average of 44 points.

The team's first game together came ahead of their flight to Barcelona in Portland, Oregon (a fitting birthplace for what is to come this summer) and resulted in a victory by a margin of almost 80 points. The defeated coach summed up the gap between the Dream Team and his team when he said “You can't cover the sun with your finger.”

A great summer of sport happened in Catalan region that summer, but The Dream Team became the icon of that moment and the influence they created on young sports enthusiasts around the world can be felt today as you look up and down the rosters the finest basketball organizations across the United States. The Dream Team's summer became the moment when Basketball entered households around the world.

To commemorate 20 years since their victory Nike Sportswear has created a line of apparel paying homage to the team. The standout piece is without doubt The Dream Team Destroyer Jacket. A premium execution of a silhouette that has become one of Nike Sportswear's best pieces tells some of the great stories of The Dream Team's summer. The traditional Destroyer's wool body and leather sleeves is present, but the detailing is where this piece comes into its own.

Led by Nike Sportswear Graphic Design Director, Russell Stott and his team the left-side sleeve features three chenille patches. Each with a different story. "The uppermost patch shows detail outlining the average point differentiation by which the team won their games (43.8) as well as a XXV reference to Barcelona as the 25th 'games' in sporting history. The middle patch talks to some of the locations that this years team will visit before the summer and the lower patch utilizes the USAB logo.

On the left-breast of the jacket there is a USA flag embroidered with inspiration from military and space travel as well as each game score stitched in. U S A is embroidered in a toweling-effect on the right-hand side of the body with a USAB pin-badge included. The numbers of the team's 'starting five' - 15, 9, 7, 14 and 6 - are also embroidered on the right-sleeve. We've also included a large embroidered XX to represent the 20th year since the games and "Land of the Free, Home of The Brave' in italicized fonts above the front pockets on either side.

"When we were looking through our archives, we also found a replica of the Dream Team jersey that Nike had created with a message to the team created on the jack tag. We've re-imagined that graphic on the inside of the jacket, calling out the 20th anniversary. In addition to The Destroyer Jacket, which is really the pinnacle piece of the collection we've also created elements of this storytelling on an AW77 Hoody, Crew sweat, Tees and Caps. In addition to the apparel collection we're also going to be re-issuing some of the footwear styles that the team wore for the tournament," added Stott. Nike Sportswear footwear styles include Nike Air More Uptempo, Nike Shox BB4, Nike Air Force 180, Nike Air Zoom Huarache 2K4 and Nike Air Force 1 Hi.

Air Force 180

Air More Uptempo

Air Force 1 High


Huarache 2K4

Shox BB4

Combining NIKE’S lightest, most technologically advanced textiles with iconic graphics, the Nike Hyper Elite Basketball Uniform helps boost players’ performance and communicates the pride of USA Basketball.

The innovation begins with Nike Aerographics, an engineered fabric that is a passive cooling solution allowing greater design and graphic flexibility while creating mesh areas in a garment without adding seams. It adds graphic interest to a garment that actually contributes to the performance by increasing air circulation. The Nike Hyper Elite Shorts to be worn by the USA Basketball team alone weigh in at 14 ounces lighter than the average shorts currently worn by professional players. Further, since unveiling Nike Aerographics in 2008, the NIKE design team has harnessed the technology’s bold design applications and endless graphic possibilities.

Taking these advancements into account, the NIKE Hyper Elite Jersey, our lightest jersey ever, features a breathable and durable design with striking Nike Aerographics. Its 3D-structured Dri-FIT fabric helps pull sweat away from the skin and reduce cling while a functional flock screenprint on the inside of the collar provides further sweat management. The sleeveless v-neck silhouette, including hem vents and modified armholes, offers mobility while the slim fit reduces bulkiness and distraction.

The jerseys are advanced to iconic when combined with bold graphics, including contrast color blocking, a signature pride Nike Aerographics on the back and a country-specific battle cry on the inside of the neck, helping to inspire players and fans alike. A federation mark, in addition to the athlete’s name and number, add to the seminal look. Meanwhile, the fabric of the men’s jersey is made with approximately 96% recycled polyester. The Nike Hyper Elite Basketball Uniform saves an average of 22 recycled plastic bottles per jersey---reflecting the NIKE commitment to considered design.

Conversely, Nike Hyper Elite Basketball Shorts feature 100% recycled polyester material, highlighting the same wicking Dri-FIT capabilities of the jersey, as well as four-way stretch fabric for mobility and comfort. Side-panels feature laser-cut perforations, supplying ventilation for supplementary sweat management. A waistband with engineered ventilation perforation and internal drawcord allows for a more secure, comfortable fit around the waist.

Dedicated to developing the most innovative athletic products in the world, Nike unveils the Nike Lunarlon Collection a performance-enhancing range of men’s and women’s training, running and basketball shoes. The creative process began with a collaboration between the Nike design team and the Nike Sports Research Lab (NSRL) conducting pressure platform tests on runners, the team isolated key impact points on the foot.

Additional design inspiration came from observing astronauts walking on the moon. This weightlessness is exactly what Nike strove to capture with its revolutionary cushioning system.

Introduced four years ago, the resulting Nike Lunarlon foam technology achieves this aim by spreading force out more evenly across the foot, providing ultra-lightweight and springy cushioning that helps protect the foot while improving stability and comfort for an enhanced running and workout experience.

30% lighter than standard phylon foam, Lunarlon cushioning is featured across the Nike Lunarlon Collection, featuring sport specific shoes with more Nike Lunarlon foam than ever for a more comfortable and adaptive fit.

Nike’s dynamic flywire provides adaptive support that loosens and tightens with the natural motion of the foot, providing a glove like fit depending on your sports activity.

The Nike Lunarlon Collection includes: the Nike Lunarglide +4, Nike Hyperdunk, Nike LunarTR1 and Nike Lunar HyperWorkout+.

Nike Lunarglide+4

Ultra lightweight and responsive, the Nike Lunarglide+4 is 18% lighter than the Nike Lunarglide+3 at 10oz and helps to maximize performance thanks to soft, springy Lunarlon cushioning and dynamic flywire.

Nike Hyperdunk

Designed to meet the containment, protection and responsive needs of elite players the Nike Hyperdunk features basketball-specific Lunarlon cushioning and dynamic Flywire for hard cuts and turns.

Nike LunarTR1

Superior cushioning, ultra lightweight (10% lighter than the TR1.3 at 11.4oz) and breathable make the Nike LunarTR1 more versatile for training across multiple sports. Flywire provides dynamic support for multidirectional movement whatever your workout.

Nike Lunar HyperWorkout+

Nike Lunar Hyperworkout+ features a training specific midsole combining Lunarlon cushioning with dynamic Flywire for responsive support during training. Ultra lightweight, the shoe is just 6oz, 16% lighter than the Nike Lunar Allways TR.

Elevating basketball performance to the next level, NIKE debuts the Nike Hyperdunk, part of the landmark Nike Lunarlon Collection. An innovative combination of advanced NIKE Flywire technology and a basketball-specific NIKE Lunarlon cushioning system, this light, more supportive, durable and breathable shoe is expressly designed to meet the demands of elite basketball players worldwide.

The upper of the Nike Hyperdunk features the most advanced version of NIKE Flywire, which uses high-strength cables for support and stability. These responsive cables are loose when at rest and dynamic in motion, tensing to help stabilize the foot. A synthetic heel clip enhances lockdown, as the engineered foam and mesh of the upper reduces weight while further increasing breathability, strength and durability. Simultaneously, the collar of the shoe wraps lower in the back and higher over the front, increasing flexibility and lateral stability in the heel and ankle. The open mesh tongue and full inner sleeve provide lightweight ventilation and a more secure, comfortable fit.

Midsole, basketball-specific Lunarlon foam cushioning supplies a soft, yet responsive foundation. Improving upon past models, there is additional foam in key areas, enhancing lateral stability and durability. A 3-D shaped, glass-reinforced, composite mid-foot shank offers torsional rigidity and responsiveness. Moving to the outsole, solid rubber provides durability and traction on a variety of surfaces while a modified traction pattern and forefoot pivot circle enhance multi-direction grip. Moreover, a high-wrapping lateral outrigger provides reinforcement for hard cuts, providing players with the support they need for high performance.

Yup, one innovation at a time.

Now wasn't that a good read?

:)