To help aid in the attempt to break the 2-hour marathon time, Nike has secretly been developing shoes that the runners will be using. The shoes contain a spring plate which, according to the research, can shave 2-5 minutes off a runners time.
The shoes aren't only for the 2-hour attempt though, many Nike runners have been racing in them. The shoes were first worn in competition at the US Olympic Marathon Trials in February. Rupp, Abdirahman, Flanagan, Cragg wore them in the trials and Olympics. Farah and Ritz at Great North Run, Hasay last week in Houston. Bekele will be wearing a pair in Duba.
The shoes have a large midsole encompassing (hiding) the spring plate, but one can see in photos, they are much thicker than the standard Nike midsole.
Springs in shoes? Clearly, this is competitive advantage that's banned by IAAF. Are the runners aware that this type of aid is illegal?
The patent:
https://www.google.com/patents/WO2016179265A1?cl=en
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