Even last year, rowing star Karsten Warholm criticized the shoe game. Now he has his own special shoes with which he tries to outdo others in the World Cup.
13:17•Updated 13:34
At the Tokyo Olympics, shoe manufacturer Nike’s so-called bounce spikes became a topic of conversation. The carbon fiber plate on the soles of the shoes and the foam midsole give a flexing effect, which releases extra energy.
Norwegian wearing puma spikes Karsten Warholm criticized shoes with new technology last year.
– Of course, technology will always be a part of this sport, but I would like to keep it at a level where the results are comparable. I think it’s important, he said at the Olympics.
– When someone makes a great performance at the moment, everyone talks about the shoes. Now that’s a problem.
Warholm himself set a wild ME time of 45.94 in the Olympic final. Although the Norwegian’s shoes also had a carbon fiber plate, they differed from Nike’s spikes.
Now, at the World Championships in Oregon, Warholm’s new shoes have attracted attention. They have a kind of claw on their head.
Warholm’s spikes have confused the competitors.
– Are they new shoes? Does Karsten only have those, Turkin Yasmani Copello wondered to the Express.
– I hope he is not better because of them. I don’t have any, Brazil, one of Warholm’s worst rivals Alison dos Santos amazed.
Norwegian star coach Leif Olav Alnes has developed new spikes. They were approved just days before the World Cup. According to the coach, the shoes will revolutionize the shoe market.
The point of the spikes developed by Alnes is that the nail at the tip of the shoe extends the contact time with the track surface. As a result, the energy generated from movement can be utilized better.
One of the shoe’s special features is the metallic clinking sound that is created when the nail hits the track surface.
The letters “BS” are stamped on the heel. It is known as an abbreviation for the English word bullshit. Warholm has previously used that expression about shoe kicking.
– You just have to follow the development when it has gone in that direction. As in skating and other sports where the game has completely changed, the Norwegian justified his changed opinion.
World Championship three trade
Warholm, who won the world championship in the fenced track circuit in 2017 and 2019, was considered a big question mark.
In the Diamond League race held in Morocco in June, Warholm got a cramp in his back thigh shortly after the start and had to leave the race.
Warholm barely had time to rehabilitate for the World Championships. The opening race was the Norwegian’s first race of the season in which he has finished.
Warholm was good as usual. He attacked the fence jungle in his typical aggressive style and came to the end with a clear time of 49.34.
In the semi-final, the going was even more convincing, when Warholm came to the finish line with a saving throw in 48.00. He was the second fastest in the entire semifinals after dos Santos, who clocked a time of 47.85.
Dos Santos has run 46.80, the top time in the world statistics this summer. of the United States Ray Benjamin is 24 hundredths behind the Brazilian. Warholm seems to be in good shape at least a little under 47 seconds.
The WC gold and medals will probably be decided between this trio. A medalist from outside it would be a big surprise.
Warholm is confident in his own possibilities.
– I’m trying to defend my territory, Warholm told the New York Times.
The 400-meter hurdles final will be run on Wednesday morning at 05:50 Finnish time. The race will be seen live on TV2 and Areena.