Nike's Olympic Fashion Show at Hudson Yards Opens Fashion Week

Nike opened the seasonal fashion week cycle with a show at the Shed in Hudson Yards, New York, on February 5, 2020. The event focused on Olympic uniforms for Tokyo 2020, made entirely from recycled materials, alongside new runners Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% and basketball shoes Nike Air Zoom BB NXT. No models walked the runway; instead, athletes like Vashti Cunningham, Sky Brown, Diana Taurasi, and Paralympic champions wore the gear. Legends Lisa Leslie, Carl Lewis, Brandi Chastain, and Joan Benoit Samuelson also attended. Nike's revenue rose 10% to $10.3 billion in the last quarter of 2019, confirming its leadership. The brand uses the runway for storytelling, leveraging collaborations with Rei Kawakubo, Jun Takahashi, Chitose Abe, Riccardo Tisci, Kim Jones, Virgil Abloh, and Craig Green. The article contrasts Nike's approach with the spectacle of Sanremo's Achille Lauro performance, questioning what is truly cool in contemporary culture.