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Athletic Footwear in Dress

Shelby Tucker
TMFD 407-001

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Introduction
When most people think of clothing or fashion, the first thing that comes to mind
probably relates to runway shows, New York City street style, or something of the like.
Athletic wear can be overlooked by many, but is a very important part of our dress and
culture. So, when exactly did we start to see athletic wear influencing society? More
specifically, how has athletic footwear transformed over the years? How much has it
affected our society and how often? Another important thing to consider is how athletic
footwear transitioned into fashion. Believe it or not, the first evidence of athletics can be
seen in cave drawings as early as 2250 BC. The focus of this paper will be specifically
on athletic footwear and its impact on the fashion industry. I will explore the most
significant time periods in which athletic footwear was transformed, beginning 10,000
years ago, when shoes were ascribed to have supernatural powers because they seemed to
make hot sand cooler and coarse ground smoother, up until the nineteenth century. The
next significant occurrence of athletic footwear was in the nineteenth century, when the
shoe industry was modernized. Third, in the mid-1900s the athletic shoe made its way
into the footwear business, covering what was then becoming a market niche. Athletic
footwear now, and footwear plans for the future, is more advanced than ever before,
changing the way consumers wear and utilize their athletic shoes.

Part I: Original Occurrence

The first developed athletic shoes were for men participating in hunting and
combat activities. Originally, sport was considered to be when a man would hunt for his
necessities, like food and shelter. Trying to become the fastest and/or most skilled hunter

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is probably how competition was developed. There is no recorded specific date of when
humans began to transform their protective-purpose shoes into specialty athletic shoes,
but it is estimated to be in Roman times. However, dating back about 3,000 years ago,
shoes were found in an Egyptian grave, that were used in a bowling game. The first
mention of running shoes was in about 250 A.D., they were called the gallica. A good
starting point for the evolution of the athletic shoe would be the Olympic Games,
beginning in 776 B.C. Athletes first ran barefoot, but by the end of the first era of the
Olympics, men wore sandal shoes called ligula, which were later called the crepida.
Early shoes fell under two categories: the sandal and the moccasin. There were no rights
or lefts until about the 1860s. Shoemakers did not directly apply sports-related features
to shoes until about the fourteenth century, when iron studs on shoes and spurs on boots
were incorporated. Shoe cushioning was first utilized by hikers, who put wool and moss
in the bottoms of their shoes, which was later developed into a felted mix of the two
fabrics that could be used as an actual insole in the shoe in the sixteenth century. Rubber
was developed in 1751 and was almost immediately used to create soles for shoes
(Cheskin, Sherkin, & Bates, 1987). The evolution of athletic footwear progressed along
side the sports that they were made for, becoming even more specialized by the
nineteenth century.

Part II: Reappearance

Prior to the 1860s, shoes were cut and sewn by hand. The sewing machine was
modified and mass-produced by 1863, allowing the shoe industry to enter the age of
mechanization. Cheskin, et al (1987) suggests In 1839 Charles Goodyear discovered the

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vulcanized process of curing rubber, which was to have a significant impact on the shoe
industry. But it was not until 1868 that the first flat-soled rubber canvas shoes were
manufactured. It wasnt until the twentieth century, though, that mass production of
shoes made athletic footwear accessible to the general public. In 1861, the first patented
spiked shoe was reported in Europe, used for cricket. In 1865, running spikes were
produced. Todays sneaker had begun production in 1868. These shoes were
originally designed for croquet and later were worn for running and tennis. Sometime
around the late nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century was when
athletic footwear began to have a role in street fashion. Sports were popular amongst
both men and women, fueling a higher demand for specialized athletic shoes. The first
sports shoes that were integrated as fashion items were for boating, tennis, and
bicycling. These shoes had a rubber sole with sateen and a canvas upper banded with
elkskin leather. Ice and roller-skating quickly followed the idea of creating fashionable
footwear by simply adding on a blade to the high cut street style boot. Styles began to
change in football and baseball footwear as well, and technical aspects were being added
to improve traction, and in the 1890s, the cleats were born. Specialty stores began to
form, one of the first being A.G. Spalding Co., in 1909, which specialized in running
shoes specifically for the marathon, cross-country, high jump, and hurdling. Also, in the
early 1900s, name brand sneaker companies began selling basketball shoes. Athletic
footwear developed constantly for years, the only low point being in 1888 when athletes
began doing six-day long races, traveling as much as 623 miles. The footwear industry
did not yet know how to create support for shoes being worn for such long distances. By

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the 1940s, sneakers became all the rage among the youth, causing the industry to
explode and modernize like never before (Cheskin et al., 1987).
Part III: Third Occurrence
During World War II, the American economy experienced a boom in sneaker
production because of the cheap prices, durability, and comfort. Post-war, blue jeans and
high and low-top sneakers became the symbol of the youth in America. Young adults
took on the style of canvas shoes with rubber bottoms, copying athletes, and fueling
Converse and Keds business (Cheskin et al., 1987). Around 1915, the automobile made
it easier for spectators and athletes to get to sporting events and activities. This was when
sports began to have a powerful influence on clothing (Payne et al., 1992). Before the
1920s, leisure and sport time was just thought of as something solely for the rich, but
work weeks for the general public began to shorten and soon they were allotted leisure
time as well. Advancements in the economy made daily tasks less time consuming, too.
By 1950, the athletic footwear industry that began as a niche market, made its way into
the footwear business as a major division. Adidas and Puma dominated the footwear
industry, specializing first in soccer, and then tackling track and field. In the mid 1960s,
Blue Ribbon Sports, which eventually became Nike, was born. After the Olympics in
1968, Adidas was able to boast that eighty percent of the Olympians were wearing their
shoes. This lead to yet another boom in the production of athletic footwear, and sports
shoes were taken to the streets right in the midst of the athletic fashion trend. Adidas
continued to modernize their shoes by creating basketball shoes that had PVC and PU
attached directly to the bottom. Nike began to innovate the athletic footwear scene in the
70s by introducing the waffle sole, among other inventions. During the mid to late 70s,

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companies such as Brooks and Saucony entered the playing field of invention (Cheskin et
al., 1987).
Part IV: Present Day Occurrence and Future Outlook
Today, athletic shoe technology is almost unbelievable. Still, the construction is
almost as simple as it was hundreds of years ago. Athletic shoes have two primary
pieces, the sole and the upper. The upper obviously covers and protects the foot, while
the sole provides comfort and cushioning. We have definitely come a long way from
simple wooden soles though, they now are separated into different sections that facilitate
different areas of the sole of the foot in order to provide the most comfort and highest
performance opportunities to the shoes wearer. Shoe companies are currently working
to be the most successful in fit accuracy and force generation that is similar to walking
barefoot on natural ground. (Dale, R. B., Hilgers, M. P., Mayer, B., & Walther, M.,
2009). Its practically impossible to go a day without seeing someone out on the streets
wearing sneakers, ranging from Converse brand, to Nike, to Keds, to Sperrys.
Designers, like Stella McCartney have made an impact on athletic wear fashion in recent
years. McCartney has her own line of high end athletic clothing made by Adidas.
Celebrity Taylor Swift produced her own line of Keds earlier this year, which became an
instant success. Most notably, famous basketball player, Michael Jordan, was given the
opportunity by Nike, in 1985, to create his own line of basketball shoes. Thus, the Air
Jordans were born. Nike is now the most valuable brand in sports business and is
constantly leading the way in innovation. Theyre working on engineering a lightweight
shoe with a sensor in the sole that can be worn while playing track and field related video
games. Just recently, the Nike Flyknit Racer was introduced; they are as light as a feather

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and have the look of a sock atop a sole. These shoes will be more environmentally
friendly because they use less fabric in production (Carr & Pastorek, 2013). Some
companies like Nike, Adidas, Brooks, Saucony, New Balance, and many more, strive to
keep up with the pace at which technology is advancing. Others, like Converse, Sperry,
and Keds, dont pay attention to the new technology so much as sticking to an authentic
brand base while creating up-to-date styles and colors. Research by McPoil (2000)
supports that athletic footwear can advance unexpectedly or unknowingly, which can
some times be an issue to doctors and other medical experts in keeping accurate records
of functionality and features of different brands and types of shoes. This can make it
difficult to precisely diagnose footwear-related injuries. I believe that in the future it will
be of no issue, with how technology advances every single day. Every economic class,
every sex, and every age wears athletic footwear. Active wear sales were at $36 billion,
for the year so far, in August. Mens running shoe sales, in particular, have been
increasing constantly in the past few years. This is because young men have found the
desire to dress up by wearing a suit with athletic shoesso in athletic footwear,
consumers are keeping with the multiple uses trend and buying footwear to match their
active wear as well as their dinner outfit. (NPD Group, 2013). Some athletes believe
that technological advances in athletic footwear only cater to injuries, if we rely too much
on the shoe support and not enough on our bodys strength. Advancements will need to
meet somewhere in between the demand of the every day athlete as well as the Olympic
athlete, in every sport and activity (Segesser, B., & Pfrringer, W., 1989). Theres no
doubt that American society is moving towards a more casual lifestyle, which only boosts

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sales in athletic footwear and active wear, promising a booming future for the athletic
wear industry.
Conclusion
There is no doubt in my mind that athletic footwear will be relevant in the future.
Americans are trying to adopt healthier lifestyles, which leads to investing in new athletic
clothing and footwear. In order to stay in business, companies are going to compete to
create the most high tech and advanced footwear. Footwear is an essential component to
participating in sports and activities while staying injury-free. Companies boast that their
new shoe will make you run faster, jump higher, and kick farther, and society buys into
that. We all want to be up to date with our fashion choices, so well continue to purchase
the newest and best products. Athletic wear companies will continue to have
celebrities create their own lines within their brand, as well as sponsor famous and
Olympic athletes. The idea that if you purchase a pair of Air Jordans, youll be better at
basketball, or if you purchase a pair of Puma spikes, youll be fast like Usain Bolt,
influences and impacts our thoughts that we just have to buy that product. In our health
and fashion conscious world, which includes athletic footwear and dress, it will only
facilitate industry advancements in the future.

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References

Carr, Austin, and Whitney Pastorek. 2013. 1_Nike (cover story). Fast Company no.
173: 88-156. Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 10,
2013).
Cheskin, M. P., Sherkin, K. J., Bates, B. T. (1987). The complete handbook of athletic
footwear. New York: Fairchild Publications.
Dale, R. B., Hilgers, M. P., Mayer, B., and Walther, M. Current Trends in Athletic Shoe
Design. Athletic Therapy Today (2009).
McPoil, T. G. (2000). Athletic footwear: Design, performance, and selection issues.
Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 3(3), 374-379.
NPD Group. (2013). NPD reports strong sales in activewear and athletic footwear from
January-August 2013. Retrieved from
https://www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/us/news/press-releases/npd-reports-strongsales-in-activewear-and-athletic-footwear-from-January-august-2013/
Payne, B., Winakor, G., and Farrell-Beck, J. (1992). The history of costume.
HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Segesser, B., and Pfrringer, W. (1989). The shoe in sport. Chicago: Year Book Medical
Publishers, Inc.