Nike’s latest sneaker, the Nike Go FlyEase, has the same flashy colors and unique design as many of its other shoes, but with an accessible twist. The new shoe has an “easy on, easy off” hands-free design, making it accommodating for a wider range of customers.
The shoe was in part inspired by Matthew Walzer, a teenager with cerebral palsy who wrote a letter to Nike in 2012 detailing how he could dress himself independently, but still needed his parents’ help to tie his shoes. Walzer asked the shoe company to come up with a design so that everyone could wear their sneakers.
Nine years later and the shoe is finally on the market. In addition to allowing Walzer to get dressed independently, the shoe was also designed for people with prosthetics, people missing limbs, and even pregnant women and busy parents. The design features a tension band that snaps into place once the wearer puts their foot in the shoe. To take the shoe off, the wearer simply steps on the heel to release tension.
The shoes are also being promoted by Italian fencer Bebe Vio who lost both arms and legs to meningitis as a child, and American Paralympic athlete Sarah Reinertsen. In an interview with CBS, Reinertsen said, “If you design for the most extreme needs, then you’re unlocking benefits for everybody.”
Image source: Popular Science
