Nike and Tokyo Olympics: a brand new line-up of designer collaborations

Few brands are as synonymous with the sporting world as Nike; few cities are as synonymous with cutting-edge fashion as Tokyo. So it makes perfect sense, then, that ahead of this year’s Summer Olympics in the Japanese capital (24 July to 9 August), these two forces will be colliding – with a little help from some of the world’s most influential designers.

The line-up features superstars of the Tokyo fashion scene, including Chitose Abe of Sacai, Jun Takahashi of Undercover and Yoon Ahn of Ambush. Joining on the international front are Matthew Williams of Alyx and Virgil Abloh of Off-White, both self-professed acolytes of Japanese style.

With an exclusive first look at the capsule collections, Vogue speaks to the assembled designers to find out how they’re fusing Nike’s innovative technical fabrics with clever nods to Japanese cultural history.

Yoon Ahn of Ambush, on capturing anime and Bōsōzoku culture via fashion:

“I wanted to capture the beauty of these very distinctive unique cultures born in Japan,” explains Ahn. The unisex Nike x Ambush collection is inspired by anime and Bōsōzoku biker gangs; both subcultures that Ahn, as a Korean-American, found herself fascinated by after settling in her adoptive home country. “Japan is currently in a very interesting stage as a country and I hope this will become a springboard for the next chapter of the country,” she adds. “It’s exciting.”

Jun Takahashi of Undercover, on spotlighting Japanese basketball through sportswear:

Takahashi is taking the opportunity to spotlight an area of his native country’s sporting culture that has been historically overlooked. As 3-on-3 basketball debuts at this Summer Olympics, Takahashi is paying tribute to the sport’s enduring popularity – despite the fact it is little-known outside of Japan. In terms of how this translates to clothing, Takahashi hopes to maintain an element of surprise, explaining that he “updated the basic function and designs of traditional basketball uniforms and applied this to daily wear.”

Chitose Abe of Sacai, on the joy of hybrid design:

For Abe, the collaboration provided an opportunity to expand on her already well-established relationship with Nike; most notably with their (hotly hypebeast-coveted) LD Waffle sneakers. In typically offbeat fashion, Abe’s capsule collection will explore the “beauty of motion” through hybridised garments, combining classic Nike staples with the newly-designed 2020 metal stand jacket.

Virgil Abloh of Off-White, on clever cool-tech made for hot Tokyo summers:

The most effusive enthusiasm for the project comes from the designers invited by Nike to participate from overseas, in part due to their reverence for Japanese culture. Abloh’s nods to the dress codes of Tokyo, however, are surprisingly practical. “Tokyo is extremely hot in the summer, so I was intrigued by the idea of a personal cooling system, developing this jacket as an alternative,” he explains. “It’s a summer puffer jacket, so to speak. In Japanese construction work, this technology has long since been used to keep the body cool.”

Matthew Williams of Alyx, on super functional style:

Williams also has his eye on functionality as much as form. (The designers are creating sportswear for Olympians, after all.) “We wanted to approach the iconic pre-cool vest in a modern way that can be used in everyday life,” he explains. As anticipation hots up for the Summer Olympics over the coming months, Nike’s collaborators seem determined to keep things cool – in every sense of the word.