The Nike Cortez are the symbol of neo vintage style
The most successful sneaker of the 70s turns 45 today and its popularity seems to have no end. Between celebs, movie sets and songs, it's still trending.
Its popularity began in 1972, when the Nike Cortez became the shoe of the Munich Olympics. They were initially called "Mexico" and shortly thereafter decided on the name "Cortez", which paid homage to Hernan Cortés, the Spanish conquistador who caused the fall of the Aztec Empire. They also become popular in the world of cinema, in fact they appear on the feet of Farrah Fawcett in the cult Charlie's Angeles - in the iconic skate scene, which will be recreated in the Nike campaign with Bella Hadid in 2017 and then on the feet of Forrest Gump in 1994, a quote from the most famous film is "Mom always said that you can understand many things about a person by their shoes, where they go, where they have been". The Nike Cortez are the symbol of the neo-vintage style for summer 2024 , which mixes retro-style accessories with contemporary garments.
There are many celebs who prefer it, including Alexa Chung, Emily Ratajkowski, the model Martha Hunt. At a London premiere, for example, Kristen Stewart went so far as to take off her stilettos on the red carpet and wear her black and white Cortez sneakers. Likewise, top model Kaia Gerber doesn't give up a pair of Cortez in her off-duty looks during fashion weeks.
THE HISTORY OF THE NIKE CORTEZ
The Nike Cortez was initially designed in 1968 by Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman, but made its debut just 4 years later, at the 1972 Munich Olympics. It also wasn't called Cortez in 1968, its first official name was Corsair. Nike wasn't even called Nike back then, the sportswear giants were called Blue Ribbon Sports until 1971, a year before the Cortez made its way onto the feet of Olympic champions around the world. The shoe's initial name was "Mexico", which comes from the 1968 Summer Olympics held in Mexico City. Once the Olympic Games were over, another name change occurred on the shoe, this time in search of something more catchy. They decided on the name Aztec, but Adidas then threatened legal action because it was too similar to their Azteca Gold track shoe. Launched as a long-distance performance running shoe and marketed towards marathon runners, the sneaker's initial purpose was to provide comfort for runners and protect the Achilles' heel. The shoe did just that: it went down in history as "the most comfortable running shoe ever," a catchphrase acquired at the time. Bowerman's innovative design, which produced a spikeless running shoe with the goal of reducing runners' times and providing maximum comfort, ended up completely redefining athletic footwear. The sneaker has provided inspiration for other sports as well, influencing nearly every aspect of the Nike BRSB, a shoe designed for skateboarding that took design cues from the original Nike Cortez.