Nike
The name of the company Nike originates from the Greek term νίκη [niki] - „victory“ and the Greek victory goddess “Nike”. Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight founded the company as “Blue Ribbon Sports” in the year 1962. One of their most successful shoes are the Nike Air Force One (the first Basketballshoe with Air cushioning in the sole, released 1982) and the complete AIR MAX Series (running shoes with air cushioning, released in 1987).
Nike employs currently (2006) 26.000 people worldwide and gained worldwide fame by sponsoring Michael “Air” Jordan. This sponsorship made them become way more successful than their main competitors Converse and Adidas. After their successful period in the 80s they bought other companies and brands which still belong to them today like Bauer, Converse or Hurley International. Right now the main athletes they sponsor are Tiger Woods (Golf), LeBron James (Basketball), Ronaldinho (Soccer) and Lance Armstrong (Biking).
Nike Air Jordans I
Nike’s fame is closely connected with one of their most successful athletes Michael “Air” Jordan. Nike sponsored Jordan since 1984 and the Nike Air Jordan shoes sport the typical Jordan logo in which Jordan does a slam dunk since 1987 (before that they had wings as a logo). The first Air Jordan model was released in 1985 and takes its form from an earlier shoe by Nike - the Nike Dunk. Initially the shoe got banned from the NBA because they argued that the black and red colorway would violate their color rules. But due to the huge success of this model the initial problem wasn’t a big deal and until 1986 23 different colorways were released and many competing companies ripped off the design. The shoe model remains very popular until today even though Michael Jordan retired from his active career as a NBA player several years ago.
Nike Air Jordans II
The Air Jordan II was released in 1986/87 when Michael Jordans career really kicked off. In this season Jordan became the first NBA player since Wilt Chamberlain to exceed the 3,000 points / season. He averaged 37.1 points per game and set a new career high in points against the Atlanta Hawks on April 16th with 61. He also won the Slam-Dunk Championship and played in the All-Star Game. Bruce Kilgore designed the Air Jordan II model and made significant changes in the design compared to the first model. This model was also the last model to carry the Jordan Wings insignia before it was replaced with the current “jumpman” logo (Michael Jordan’s silhouette while he is doing a slam dunk).
Nike Air Jordans III
In the NBA season of 87-88 Michael Jordan received his first NBA MVP award and won the Slam Dunk contest again. The Nike Air Jordan III was designed by Tinker Hatfield and released in 1988. It was completely different from the first and second Air Jordan model and it was the first model in which the air cushioning was visible. This model was the first of the Air Jordan series that had the jumpman logo (Michael Jordan’s silhouette while he is doing a slam dunk) instead of the Jordan Wings. Jordan told Nike he would leave them if he didn’t like the third model but after he saw the first sample Jordan decided to stay because he absolutely loved the design.
Nike Air Jordans IV
Tinker Hatfield designed the Nike Air Jordan IV model but didn’t make as many changes as he did in his design for the Air Jordan III model. Anyway this model was the first that was released worldwide and became a bestseller due to its design and fantastic cushioning sole (for that era).
Nike Air Jordans V
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Nike Air Jordans VI
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Nike Air Jordans VII
The Air Jordan VII model was released in late 1991 when Air Jordan was on his career high. He won the second straight title with the Chicago Bulls and picked up several awards and honors. He also won the gold medal in the summer Olympics of 92, with the unforgettable Dream Team. This model was like the Air Jordan III and IV designed by Tinker Hatfield and shared many similarities with previous models. Different to previous Air Jordans was the innovative use of the Nike Hurache technology that made the shoe really stick tight to the foot.
Nike Air Jordans VIII
The Nike Air Jordan VIII was released in 1992/93 when the Chicago Blls won their third consecutive NBA title. Michael Jordan scored his 20,000th point in this season and got his seventh straight scoring title. This Air Jordan model had also many things with the previous models in common but sported a lot more details, color and accents. The shoe had think padding and therefore got easily warm and was pretty heavy for a Jordan model. This model was just released in three colorways which is surprising given the huge popularity of all previous releases.
Nike Air Jordans IX…
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Nike Air Force I
The Nike Air Force I model was released in 1982. The Air Force I was the first Nike Basketball shoe that used the Nike Air cushioning in the sole. The name of the shoe derives from the Air Force I, the plane that carries the President of the United States of America. The Air Force One’s are one of the most popular shoe models Nike ever released. They are still produced and exist in a huge variety of colorways. They are also very popular for customizers who change the materials or colorways of the shoe and thereby create unique and very creative versions of it. The Nike Air Force One’s came originally in Low top and Hi top versions and in 1994 Nike added a Mid top to the lineup.
Nike Dunk
The Nike Dunk model was first introduced in 1985 as a Basketball shoe that comes as Hi-Top or Low-Top model. Nike used the Dunk model to support their “College Colors” program in which a selection of Colleges participated which got their Dunks in matching university colors. The Nike Dunk model became popular in the skate scene and Nike released a version specifically designed for skateboarders known as the Nike SB Dunk.
Official Links:
- Official Nike Website
- Nike Group Business Website
- Nike ID Website
- Nike Skateboarding Website
- Nike Basketball Website
- Nike Plus Website
- Nike Football Website
- Nike Golf Website
- Nike Running Website
- Nike Women Website
- Nike Cycling Website
- Nike Bauer Website
- Nike Japan
