In Japan, where traditional racing flats had a market, popular brands are disappearing. Not long ago, you could find many racing flats on Japanese sports brand websites that weren’t available elsewhere.
Japanese consumers used to spend a lot on their specialist racing flats and running gear.
Now, most marathon runners, both elite and amateur, prefer super shoes with thick midsoles and carbon plates.
Mary Keitany won the 2018 NYC marathon in Adidas Takumi Sen 3. She was the last top athlete to win using traditional racing flats.
The latest Takumi Sen 10 and Adios 8 in the Adizero line are only recommended for 5-10k runs. It’s surprising because their stack height is more than double that of traditional racing flats.
A tribute to some of the latest racing shoes you can still buy (if visiting the country)
The Joma R-5000 is designed especially for fast, experienced runners with good running technique. When you look at it, you can see that it is a shoe with minimal cushioning and a low profile, which means that the runner’s technique is going to be a determining factor in their performance.
With a 6-millimeter drop and a weight of around 167 grams, this “featherweight”shoe is designed for runners looking for a lightweight, high-performance shoe with a refined running technique to make the most of all its features.
Amaia Cabezudo – Runnea
Yuki Kawauchi, one of the last who took them to victory.
Yuki Kawauchi, the Marathon Star of the People, a man known as the “citizen runner” given that he used to work full-time for the government of Saitama Prefecture and trained in his time off with his own expenses without any sponsorship.
Kawauchi won the 2018 Boston Marathon wearing a custom made SortieMagic RP2. In 2020, he left his job in local government and became a full-time professional runner (see Wikipedia).
He was probably one of the last pure breed Japanese marathoners / long distance runners who changed from racing flats to plated shoes.
