Asics boosts personalisation as it updates Metaspeed shoe

Asics has updated its Metspeed series shoe line that launched last year with the claim that it’s taking “the performance of product personalisation to the next level”.

It has made use of data accumulated through its elite athletes in competition to refine the product design to cater for the two major running styles, “allowing every runner to perform at their personal best and record their fastest times yet”.

What that means in practice is the launch of the Metaspeed Edge+ and Metaspeed Sky+ shoes that are due in-store on 14 June.

It’s a key development given the brand’s prominence in the running category and this strength was seen last year when the delayed Tokyo2020 saw Asics-wearing elite runners winning gold medals in both the men's and women's triathlon events, as well as achieving over 200 personal bests.

The company said the “unique design” of the Sky+ model for stride runners and the Edge+ model for those with a cadence style “continues to centre on a crucial insight by scientists at the ASICS Institute of Sport Science (ISS): athletes perform better when running in shoes that are optimised for their running style”.

Both models now feature increased volumes of the FF Blast Turbo foam and more targeted placement of the product's carbon plates “to ensure that runners can increase their stride length and build increased speed in a way that is natural to their running style”.

The foam and propulsive carbon plate are “precisely placed to gain more bounce-back” and runners wearing these shoes “can conserve more energy while maintaining their pace at the later stages of the race”.

And of course, such enhancements also carry great weight when those who run at a less intensive level, or those just looking for a running shoe for everyday use, are mulling what to buy.