adidas ZX 10,000 C

adidas has worked with designer Jacques Chassaing on a celebration of one of the most revered adidas footwear lines of all time, the ZX series. The latest result was the ZX 10,000 C, which first appeared earlier in 2019 and instantly cemented the ZX’s enduring legacy. As the original designer of the ZX range, Jacques Chassaing brings his revolutionary approach to running footwear to the fore once more, while staying true to the aesthetics and technologies of the time. This is most obvious in one of Chassaing’s crowning achievements, the adidas Torsion system. It is a technology that has continued to play a part in numerous adidas models over the past three decades, and one that appears in all its glory on the 10,000 C. By using a TPU arch to bridge the heel and forefoot, it allows the front and rear of the foot to operate and adapt to surfaces independently, offering high degrees of support and stability.

For the very first ZX running shoes, Chassaing was inspired by archive athlete posters from the brand when creating their iconic competition colorways. The first of these two new iterations also draws on similar inspiration, utilizing pearl whites and grey across the uppers, punctuated by sparks of fuchsia on the three stripes and heel, as well as a burnt orange TPU panel on the heel.

Meanwhile, the second pair in the drop alludes to the parallels in speed and technology that Chassaing would draw between his footwear designs and the world of sports bikes. Here, the uppers veer between the deepest shades of black and pulse-raising neon green - a fitting nod to the fastest bikes of its time, from one of the fastest shoes of its time.