Are Super Shoes Unethical? Philosopher Sabrina Little on the Fairness of Super Shoes

The Strength Running Podcast

Do super shoes give runners who use them an unfair advantage? Do they make it impossible to compare modern finish times with earlier performances?

Sabrina Little is a trail and ultra runner, formerly a professional runner for HOKA. She has won 5 national titles and a World silver medal, she previously held American records in the 24-hour and 200K, and she was 2013 USATF Ultrarunner of the Year.

Sabrina earned her doctorate in Philosophy and teaches ethics at Christopher Newport University.

We talk about:

• The ethical concerns of super shoes
• Sabrina’s lack of satisfaction post-5k due to wearing super shoes
• The distortion between effort and outcome when wearing super shoes
• The nuance of fairness and privilege as they relate to super shoes
• The need for clear shoe technology definitions and regulations to maintain the “spirit of sport”
• Why runners and coaches need to advocate for the intrinsic value of running

Continue the super shoes conversation by sending this episode to a friend with your thoughts.

Links & Resources from the Show:

• Sabrina on X/Twitter
• Sabrina on Instagram
• Sabrina's book, The Examined Run: Why Good People Make Better Runners
• Find Sabrina Little on Strava
• Want to learn more about super shoes? Tune into episode 227 with biomechanics and sport science PhD Geoff Burns.
• Hear from top track, road, and ultra runners on how they stay healthy.

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Thank you to 2Before for supporting Strength Running!