Adidas Gazelle

Adidas Gazelle History

In the year 1966, the Adidas Gazelle was first introduced as a performance training shoe. Throughout time, this classic shoe became one of the most iconic silhouettes from the brand next to the Stan Smith. Though, the real story behind the name of the shoe is still unsure, the Gazelle has become one of the crowd favorites, thus the brand continues to produce the model 50 years later.

The Gazelle, was the first shoe from Adidas to have a suede upper, since during that time, leather was commonly used for shoes. The advantage they got from having a suede upper for a shoe is that it is much lighter and more flexible than leather and still manages to maintain great protection for the foot. The original released colorways of the Adidas Gazelle were the blue and the red colorways and both sporting the white stripes on the sides. The shoe also had a different outsole which provides different kinds of traction. The Red Gazelle which was known as the “Gazelle Rot” showcased a sole taken from the “Olympiade” shoe which was a transparent non-slip sole. The Blue Gazelle also known as “Gazelle Blau” applied the microcell technology and provided a microcell ripple sole for the shoe. This technology embodied the small air bubbles into the rubber, providing an additional cushioning for impact on landing with the ripple effect of the shoe allowing the foot to have a firm grip on indoor surfaces.

It was in the 1970s that the Adidas Gazelle became one of the most popular shoes from the Adidas brand. Adidas did some experimentation on various types of outsoles and provided upgraded versions on the shoe. Along with these is the so-called “Soft Protect” which provides protection on the Achilles tendon and also a vinyl forming tongue which gives off comfort. By 1972, the brand released the microcell sole with hexagonal tread which the brand used for the new re-issue of the shoe.

The Adidas Gazelle became extremely popular especially in the UK and has been a part of some major sub-culture in the 80’s proving that the shoe is truly a classic. A few of the legendary groups to worship the Adidas Gazelle Reggae, Hip Hop, Terrence Casuals, Grunge, and Britpop.

The silhouette has witnessed various collaborations and amazing releases throughout its existence. One of the latest collaborations for the Adidas Gazelle is the “Wood Wood Adidas Gazelle”. The Danish brand, Wood Wood, celebrates its 15^th anniversary this year through some big collaboration in which one is with their long-time partner, the Adidas brand and gave a touch on the Adidas Gazelle.

They gave the Gazelle a black and white image which took inspiration from Nørrebro, a famous home-neighborhood in Copenhagen. The shoe showcases a long-haired suede upper with the “Nørrebro” branding on the side. The W.W. logo can be observed on the back part of the shoe along with the words “Madness” and “Mayhem” on the heel of each shoe.  Both the Adidas and Wood Wood Branding are also featured on the tongue of the shoe.

The Adidas Gazelle continues to live on being one of the iconic shoes of the Adidas brand. Various iterations are made on the silhouette along with a variety of colorways released, allowing the people to have a lot of choices that would definitely suit their taste when grabbing a pair of these classic sneakers.