Adidas and FCB create performance shoe for runners with Down syndrome

Three years ago, Adidas and FCB introduced Runner 321, a campaign that encouraged top marathons to reserve bib number 321 for runners with Down syndrome or other neurodivergent athletes as a statement about the importance of inclusion. 

At the time, FCB said it was working on another related initiative for Adidas, but the brand couldn’t discuss it. 

On Friday, that special initiative was unveiled: A running shoe designed to accommodate the genetic anomalies common to the six million people globally living with Down syndrome. 

Chris Nikic, an Adidas-sponsored athlete who was the first person with Down syndrome to complete an Ironman triathlon and was the inspiration for Runner 321, announced the shoe, coming in 2026, on his instagram

The video explains some of the foot anomalies that can cause painful damage to their feet, presenting a barrier to the physical activity that brings a wide range of physical and emotional benefits. 

“Since Chris has gotten more involved in running marathons, his physical ability, his confidence, his energy, is so much higher,” said Chris’s father, Nik Nikic. “When he first started, he would run a 5k, he would have blisters everywhere. His toes were all banged up to the point where he'd be in pain all the time.” 

A super in the video explains the problem this way, “For those six million people, access to sports can feel impossible.” 

Impossible is Nothing has been an Adidas brand platform since 2004, and was relaunched and repositioned in 2021 as a manifesto for equity, empowerment and inclusion. (Though Adidas seemingly made You Got This its main brand platform earlier this year.)  

Much of the video explains how Adidas is developing the shoe with Down syndrome athletes, sharing and testing prototypes with updated features. 

“Our product team is working with athletes, including Chris, with disabilities to say what do you need,” said global CEO Bjorn Gulden in the video. “There's many, many needs around the world in different groups that we can actually care for, and I think this is just a start.” 

While Adidas’s Impossible Is Nothing campaigns received praise for their messages about equity and inclusion, the brand has trailed competitors like Nike and Reebok for actual product innovation to address challenges facing disabled athletes. 

Runner 321 was an example of the brand actually driving change for the Down syndrome community, which FCB has been closely associated with for years as AOR for the Canadian Down Syndrome Society. All six of the World Marathon Majors -- Boston, New York, Chicago, London, Berlin and Tokyo -- agreed to keep #321 for disabled runners, making a powerful statement about both the importance of inclusion while changing perceptions of what it means to live with Down syndrome and the benefits that come with athletics and sport. As a campaign so well alignedwith the Adidas brand, “Runner 321” also earned FCB global industry recognition, including a Cannes Lions Direct Grand Prix and winning Best in Arts, Entertainment, Sports and Media at the PRWeek Awards U.S. 2024. 

But the new shoes represent a next level of action for Adidas. 

“Runner 321 has given the community a place and iconic number in mainstream sports and now the next milestone,” wrote FCB chief creative officer Nancy Crimi-Lamana on LinkedIn. “A performance shoe built for people with Down syndrome by people with Down syndrome to address the unique needs of their feet. Numerous field tests, countless prototypes and three years of development with the global Adidas team to get here. The grace, generosity and resilience from an army of people to see this to the finish line has been outstanding.”