Faith Kipyegon, A’ja Wilson and how Nike is adapting to its female athletes

When Faith Kipyegon made her historic four-minute mile attempt in Paris’s Stade Charléty in June, she did so in a custom-made Nike aerodynamic speed suit, a bra made from a new 3D-printed material named FlyWeb, and featherweight shoes (the upper was lighter than three paperclips) built to her exact specifications. While she didn’t beat the four-minute mark, she still broke the world record (her own, which she had set in July 2023) with a time of 4:06.42. Alongside the innovations in apparel and footwear – production of FlyWeb, which Kipyegon helped evolve, was moved forward so she could train and compete in it – Nike engineered every detail of the attempt, from location and time of year, to covering the stadium in purple, Kipyegon’s favourite colour, and inviting Joan Benoit, the first women’s Olympic Games marathon champion in 1984.

“There were a couple of key elements that Faith said would be critical for her success,” says Tanya Hvizdak, the vice president of global women’s sports marketing at Nike. “The location was something that she was keenly helping us pick, she’s had a lot of success on that track. She said the sun gives her energy, so could we go to a place where she could draw on that. And then she wanted to make sure she had the energy of a crowd, that people were there with her on this.” 

It was Hvizdak who, the day after the attempt, presented Kipyegon with the news that, in her honour, Nike would be funding the ‘Dare to Dream’ maternity ward in her hometown in Kenya. The nearest hospital was previously around 35km away, and mothers and children were dying as a result. “To see this, it’s really emotional. It will help so many mothers to hold their babies in their hands,” said Kipyegon, who gave birth to her own daughter Alyn in June 2018.

“We knew maternity health is extremely important to Faith. If you have a conversation with her, the first thing she’ll share is, how can she continue to lift up her community? How does she provide those opportunities that she’s seen around the world that her own home hasn’t been able to experience?” says Hvizdak. “So when the team had a conversation of how we continue to help lean into Faith’s legacy, there was no better way to celebrate with her.”

Kipyegon’s attempt was just one in a series of big moments around women’s sports that Nike has been supporting and pushing. “For the first time in years, the storytelling and cultural cachet around Nike Women rivals – some would say, exceeds – what the brand is doing with men’s sports or athletes,” Business of Fashion wrote recently.

In February, Nike aired its first Super Bowl ad in nearly three decades, a 60-second spot celebrating women athletes. In May, it launched WNBA star A’ja Wilson’s signature shoe, the “A’One Pink Aura,” which sold out within minutes. The campaign for the shoe, which centred Wilson’s heritage, community and Black identity, was met with widespread acclaim across social media and in the press (The New York Times called it “the best TV commercial of the year”). Having debuted several signature sneakers with WNBA stars in the league’s early years – and before: in 1995, Nike released the Air Swoopes, the first signature basketball shoe named after a female athlete, Sheryl Swoopes, months before the WNBA was founded – the company then went more than a decade without launching a new one for mass distribution until 2022. (There hasn’t been a player edition for women’s football since Mia Hamm’s boot in 1999, but rumours are that the next is soon to come.)

Wilson’s sneakers were set into motion in early 2023, and Hvizdak says she informed every detail of it. “She wanted to have her shoe from both an adult perspective and kids, because she wanted to make sure that she was inspiring kids and that they could be part of that journey.” Including her grandmother in the commercial and having a satin lining in the shoe were other details requested by Wilson. “Her voice was seen all throughout the product. The reason it resonated with consumers was because it was through A’ja’s voice, it was authentic to her. Our athletes help us make connections with consumers.” 

Both Wilson and Kipyegon have been a part of Nike’s Athlete Think Tank, which, led by Hvizdak, is a collective of female athletes brought together to share ideas, collaborate, and help the company improve the athlete experience both on and off the field. Other names involved have been Serena Williams, Sabrina Ionescu, Sha’Carri Richardson, Sam Kerr and Sue Bird. Since the Think Tank started in 2021, innovations have included a new maternity line in 2022, a Nike-specific Hyperice recovery boot, leak-protection shorts in 2023, designed to minimise the risk of leaks during menstruation, and the fact that white football shorts are a big no-no. This particular point was put into practice for Nike’s Lioness 2025 kit, which had dark shorts for both home and away.

These sessions are important for both women’s sport and the brand itself, which a few years ago went through a gender reckoning. In 2018, female employees at Nike described a ‘boys club’ culture, which was followed by several high-profile female athletes leaving the brand, including Olympic champion Allyson Felix, who cited inadequate maternity protections. Historically, female athletes across sports and brands also haven’t had the same amount of innovation, resources and investment as the men. In 2023, Nike launched the Phantom Luna, its first boot designed specifically for female players. Until then, women were expected to play in a kit built for men, leading to discomfort (experienced by over 80 per cent of top female players according to 2023 research) and injuries like ACLs.

With this in mind, the fact that Kipyegon’s bodysuit, bra, and shoes were all tailored to her exact measurements and 3D scan becomes all the more vital, and moving forward it will be a priority for Nike. “We’re doubling down,” says Hvizdak. “Our Research Center, the Lebron James, has had more women’s body scans than men’s. Thousands of women have gone through there to help accelerate how we’re building products.” 

Ultimately, she says the most important thing is making sure they are pushing a system of change across the industry and all sports, listening to the voices of their athletes and helping set them up for success. The day after the (unsuccessful) four-minute mile attempt, Hvizdak told me that she had been telling everyone to watch Kipyegon at the upcoming Prefontaine Classic track-and-field meet. “Watch out for what she does, because she’s showing even herself what’s possible. Expect that from Faith and from us as a brand. You’re going to continue to see us figure out how we push human potential and what else we can help break.” Eight days later, Kipyegon showed up at the meet and set a new world record for 1500 metres in front of a sell-out crowd.