Nike, already struggling in the sports industry, faced another setback as Adidas celebrated a major victory at the London Marathon, where two athletes wearing its gear set outstanding new records.
Adidas stocks saw a boost today after Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe made history by completing a marathon in under two hours, a feat achieved in the brand’s Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 shoes.
Sawe clinched the win with a groundbreaking time of one hour, 59 minutes, and 30 seconds, shattering a long-standing goal in athletics: finishing a marathon in less than two hours.
Meanwhile, in the women’s category, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa also etched her name into the record books. She set a new world record for women, clocking in at two hours, 16 minutes, and 16 seconds, also sporting the same Adidas footwear as Sawe.
The achievement of a sub-two-hour marathon has been a dream in the sporting world for years.
Post-race, Sawe proudly displayed his $500 Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 shoe, marked with ‘WR’ and ‘sub-2’ in black marker, symbolizing his incredible achievement.
He beat the previous world record of 2:00:35 set at the Chicago Marathon in October 2023 by the late Kelvin Kiptum.
The win marks a boost for Adidas against arch-rival Nike, after years of lab-backed experiments and near-misses to develop a so-called ‘supershoe’.
Adidas shares rose on Monday after Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe reportedly became the first athlete to run a marathon in under two hours wearing Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 trainers
Elliott Hill has been Nike’s CEO since October 2024
Nike’s revenue has been shrinking since early 2024, and its shares are close to a 15-year low after losing around 75 percent of their value over the last five years.
Analysts attribute the collapse to a combination of brand repositioning, a shift toward direct-to-consumer sales and weakening demand in key markets such as China.
Retail analyst Neil Saunders told the Daily Mail the company’s recovery remains uneven and that it still has ‘a lot of work to do’ under the leadership of CEO Elliott Hill.
Nike has spent years focused on developing record-breaking running shoes, coming close to major milestones but falling short of official records.
In 2017, Nike’s Breaking2 project was a specially organized attempt to help runners complete marathons in under two hours.
Held at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, it used ideal conditions, rotating pacemakers and other performance aids, but ultimately fell short.
Two years later, Kenyan runner Eliud Kipchoge succeeded in running a marathon distance in under two hours during the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna.
This was a controlled event designed to maximize performance, with carefully managed pacing and conditions.
However, neither run counts as an official world record because they were not held under standard race rules – including open competition and consistent pacing, which are required for record eligibility.
Sawe stormed to victory in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa also made history, setting a new women-only world record with a time of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds wearing the same shoes
Nike’s revenue has been declining since early 2024, with its shares now near a 15-year low after losing around 75 percent of their value since peaking in 2021
At Sunday’s London Marathon, Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha also turned heads by finishing second on his debut.
Like Assefa and Sawe, he was wearing Adidas’ Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, which is due to go on sale this week.
Featuring ultra-light materials, innovative foam and carbon-plated soles, the shoe weighs around 97 grams – about 30 percent less than its predecessor – and improves running economy by 1.6 percent, according to Adidas.
‘The Adidas family is incredibly proud of Sabastian and Tigst’s historic achievements,’ said Patrick Nava, general manager at Adidas Running.
‘This is a testament to years of hard work and dedication alongside our innovation team.’
Adidas shares were up 2 percent in mid-morning, although they are down 18 percent since the start of this year on concerns about the group’s exposure to US tariffs and the impact of the conflict in the Middle East.
Adidas released its Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1 trainers in late 2023, after Assefa set a new women’s marathon world record while wearing them at the women’s Berlin Marathon.
The third iteration of the shoe will be released for $500 a pair exclusively via the Adidas app, with a wider release in the autumn marathon season, according to the company’s website, but the steep price tag puts them out of reach of most runners.
Despite setbacks, there has been some progress by Nike to be more available to consumers. In May 2025, the brand returned to Amazon after a five year hiatus.
‘Nike is investing in our marketplace to ensure we’re offering the right products, best services and tailored experiences to consumers wherever and however they choose to shop,’ Amazon said at the time.
The company originally agreed to sell its products on the e-commerce site in 2017 in exchange for stricter policing of unauthorized third-party sellers.
‘Nike’s results are somewhat better than anticipated, though they show that the brand is having a very uneven recovery,’ Saunders added.
