Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 breaks the marathon barrier in historic fashion. April 28, 2026 A fashion and pop culture writer who watches a lot... On April 27, 2026, the running world changed forever thanks to determination, grit and Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3. Kenyan distance runner Sabastian Sawe crossed the finish line at the London Marathon in 1:59:30, the first person in history to complete a sanctioned marathon in under two hours. The achievement is already being compared to Roger Bannister's four-minute mile, a milestone that once seemed physically impossible. And just like Bannister's feat, this one has sparked a conversation not just about human limits, but about the equipment that helps push them. So what was on Sawe's feet when he made history? The Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, a shoe that had only just been unveiled to the world ahead of the race. It wasn't just Sawe, either. Fellow Adidas athlete Yomif Kejelcha, who finished just 11 seconds behind in 1:59:41, wore the same pair. So did Ethiopian long-distance runner Tigst Assefa, who set a new women's-only marathon world record of 2:15:41 that same day. Three historic performances. One shoe. A new standard in lightweight running footwear. The most striking thing about the Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 is how little of it there actually is. Adidas has engineered a shoe that weighs just 97 grams in a UK men's size 8.5, making it the brand's first sub-100 gram marathon racing shoe. That's not a minor technical footnote, it represents a 30% weight reduction compared to the previous Evo 2 model. To put that number in perspective: a standard Nike Air Force 1 in a size 9 weighs around 465 grams. Even the Adidas Samba, widely beloved as a casual lifestyle sneaker, comes in around 340 grams. The Adizero Evo SL, itself a lightweight trainer, weighs approximately 224 grams; more than double what the Pro Evo 3 tips the scales at. In a sport where seconds and fractions of effort matter enormously, shaving that kind of weight off your foot is a significant mechanical advantage. What's new compared to the previous version. The Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 is not simply a lighter version of what came before, it represents a genuine leap in materials technology. The most significant change lies in the midsole, where Adidas has introduced Lightstrike Pro Evo foam. This new compound is nearly 50% lighter than the foam used in earlier iterations of the shoe, yet it doesn't sacrifice cushioning. According to Adidas, the updated setup delivers 11% greater forefoot energy return compared to the Evo 2, which is a meaningful improvement in a sport where energy efficiency is everything. Alongside the new foam, Adidas replaced the EnergyRods 2.0 carbon rod system with a redesigned Energyrim carbon frame. Where carbon rods run in lines through the midsole, the Energyrim wraps around it, a structural change that appears to offer both improved propulsion and better weight distribution across the forefoot strike zone. Underfoot, Continental rubber provides reliable grip at racing speeds, the same trusted compound found in some of the best high-performance running shoes on the market. Technology and the future of marathon running. Performances like Sawe's inevitably reignite the debate about the role of footwear technology in athletics. Critics will question how much of the achievement belongs to the runner and how much to the shoe. It's a fair conversation, but it also risks underselling what Sawe, and Kejelcha, and Assefa, actually did on that course. No shoe runs a marathon. It takes years of elite training, extraordinary physiology, and mental fortitude to perform at that level under race conditions. That said, it would be naive to dismiss the role that innovation plays. The super shoe era, which began with Nike's Vaporfly in 2017, permanently changed the marathon landscape. The Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 is the latest chapter in that story, and perhaps the most dramatic one yet. What Adidas has built is a genuine engineering achievement, and the results on the London course speak for themselves. When can you get one? A limited number of pairs were released on April 25 at Adidas.com and select running specialty retailers ahead of the London race. A broader general release is planned for fall 2026, timed to coincide with the main marathon season. Given the historic debut the shoe has already had, demand is likely to be considerable when that wider launch arrives. The Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3 didn't just carry three athletes to world records on a Sunday morning in London. It announced, loudly and clearly, that the next chapter of marathon running has begun. Shop editor's picks Featured image: - Read Also

Nike is opening a new SoHo flagship at 611 Broadway on 16 April, directly across from Adidas' longtime store at Broadway and West Houston Street. The location, formerly occupied by Crate & Barrel, sits two blocks from Nike's previous SoHo shop at 529 Broadway. The proximity sets up a direct retail rivalry between the sportswear giants at a bustling Manhattan intersection. Adidas has occupied its SoHo flagship since 2004. The opening comes as the brands show diverging fortunes. Adidas reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 sales grew 11% to €6.08 billion, with full-year sales reaching €24.81 billion, up 13% on a currency-neutral basis. CEO Bjørn Gulden said the quarter "ended better than we expected". Nike's recent performance was not detailed in the article.