Nike’s 2020 Olympic Uniforms Will Be Made of Recycled Shoe Parts

When July 24 arrives, the athletes who will represent the U.S. at the Games of the XXXII Olympiad will be looking to add to their legacies as the globe’s most decorated performers. Since the international event will already include a nod to sustainability through medals crafted out of recycled cell phones, Nike is upping the globe’s combined commitment to the environment through designing the Americans’ Olympic uniforms from treated shoe parts, among other components.

Looking forward to watching 2020 Olympians run miles in these sustainable shoes! @Nike is dressing athletes in shoes made from recycled materials for a Gen-Z consumer base who thinks about the environment as they shop: https://t.co/CS3KnwO6C0 #Olympics #recycling #sustainability

— RTS Green (@RTSGreen) February 7, 2020

We had already been excited to see how our nation’s representatives would fare among the world’s best, so the announcement from Nike that those who take to the podium as victors will be calling attention not only to their feats but also to recycling’s benefits enhanced our eagerness for the competition to commence.

With the national team logo and other pieces of the Olympic uniforms consisting of the aforementioned footwear pieces and manufacturing extras, and the Olympians’ jackets and pants dependent on recycled materials such as nylon and polyester for their environment-conscious looks, it will be interesting to see how Nike, which has diligently put together kits for other countries, uses reactions to the U.S. designs to inspire other creations.

Ok the Brazil and France Olympic skateboarding kits by Nike and Parra are so awesome. Looking forward to a lot more of this in the Summer! pic.twitter.com/QIyqY7oxom

— Ben The Illustrator / Ben Draws ✏️✌️ (@BenIllustrator) February 6, 2020

The company has pledged to give more attention to its carbon footprint, so through the Olympic uniforms, in essence, the July 24-August 9 games will be the perfect platform for it to back up that vow. Given that the Olympic Games, especially the summer edition, will always include discussions on more than athletic success, we are curious to see how many headlines the recycled apparel receives, what American competitors have to say about it and what the world at large will conclude about the innovative approach to attire.

More than five months away, then, the Tokyo-set games already have us wondering how that enthusiasm for recycled products will influence the creation of promo goods in conjunction with the pageant. Might, for example, even more recycled shoe parts or cell phones be reborn as additional apparel options, signage or other goods that the promo world calls on to command the public’s gaze?