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World-class athletes join strongest-ever team

Ninety of the best triathletes, trail stars and road runners in Europe join forces with HOKA ONE ONE for the 2020 season.

Our 2020 roster promises to be our strongest yet as we add 14 athletes to the team, including a number of established stars.

Download the full list of 2020 HOKA ONE ONE EMEA athletes

German triathletes Anne Reischmann and Carolin Lehrieder, Dutch favourite Tessa Kortekaas and UK athletes George Goodwin, Elliot Smales and Thomas Davis are all partnering with the brand for the first time in 2020.

A host of internationally-renowned athletes have also put pen to paper for the year ahead, including 2019 Transvulcania ultra-winner Thibaut Garrivier and UTMB legend Ludovic Pommeret; IRONMAN champions Joe Skipper and Emma Pallant; French triathlon stars Denis Chevrot, Arnaud Guilloux and Kevin Maurel; plus the world-famous Patrik Nilsson.

Triathlon

No fewer than 53 international- and national-class athletes combine to make up our latest triathlon stable. In addition to those listed above, existing athletes that have signed with the brand include 2019 IRONMAN Sweden winner, Boris Stein, Kona finalist, Els Visser, and 2019 IRONMAN Wales winner, Simone Mitchell.

They join current IRONMAN Hamburg title holder, Susie Cheetham, two-time Kona podium finisher, David McNamee, 2019 IRONMAN Barcelona runner-up, Laura Zimmermann, the former IRONMAN 70.3 Nice winner, Manon Genet, and the ever-lasting Eneko Llanos.

Young talent

Our triathlon team welcomes up-and-coming Brits, George Goodwin, Elliot Smales and Thomas Davis.

For George, the 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 Staffordshire winner: “I’ve consistently had some of the fastest runs in 70.3 races over the last season and I feel HOKA can help me make more gains in this discipline and when I move up to full distance.

“It will be a bonus to enjoy the extra cushioning when needed and switch to a more stripped back HOKA shoe for faster training sessions.”

Elliot, who recorded the fastest debut IRONMAN time for a British athlete at Barcelona last year, says: “I’m excited to be signing with a brand that considers the subtle differences between the needs of triathletes and runners, whilst providing great products for both.”

New additions

Another, more established British name will also be officially wearing HOKA for the first time next year.

“You only have to look at the HOKA team roster to see how many high-profile athletes are training and racing in the shoes,” says 2019 IRONMAN Lanzarote winner Nikki Bartlett, who now laces up in HOKA.

“I’ve been testing HOKA shoes for about six months now, and the range of choice is incredible,” adds Bartlett, who will also aim to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games as a Guide, with Alison Peasgood.

Also teaming up with HOKA for the first time is rising German star Anne Reischmann, who, shortly after signing, said: “I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity HOKA gives me as a young triathlete to be part of a team that features so many superstars in our sport!”

Fellow German triathlete Carolin Lehrieder is another new addition to the HOKA team for this year. “I’m proud and excited to join the very accomplished team at HOKA,” says Lehrieder, who took top-spot at IRONMAN Italy last year.

“The variety of shoes the brand offers makes it easy to find the appropriate shoe for everyone’s individual needs. HOKA feels cushioned and comfortable, yet fast and dynamic!”

Current IRONMAN Malaysia champion Tessa Kortekaas is another athlete who will be lacing up in HOKA in 2020.

“I’m proud and happy to be part of the HOKA team and hungry to keep improving on my marathon performance,” says Tessa.

“For sure, 2020 is going to be an exciting year and I will be fully focused on the IRONMAN World Champs in Hawaii. There it’s going to be my #timetofly.”

Trail

We have also bolstered our trail team for 2020, increasing our stable of athletes to 25 off-road runners across EMEA. New members of the team include German athlete Andreas Schindler and ultra-trail specialist Peter van der Zon from the Netherlands.

Schindler and van der Zon join an impressive list of trail athletes who have either re-signed with the brand for 2020 or continued on multi-year deals. Such stars include last year’s TDS winner Audrey Tanguy, former UTMB champ Ludovic Pommeret, French national team runner Nicolas Martin as well as the in-form Thibaut Garrivier, who finished second in the most recent CCC race.

Ahead of another big year, Garrivier says: “I’m really happy to re-sign with the HOKA family for 2020. My schedule will include some big marathon-distance events earlier on in the year, like Zegama and Mont-Blanc, but I’ll also be taking my learnings from ultra-trail into the Ourea 250km and CCC at UTMB – a perfect way to enjoy the whole HOKA range!”

Road

Featuring athletes who specialise in half marathon, marathon, cross country and track disciplines, our HOKA EMEA road team boasts 11 high-performance stars from the UK, France and Germany.

Spearheaded by the likes of 2:12 marathoner Benjamin Malaty from France and 2:16 marathon runner Frank Schauer from Germany, the HOKA road team incorporates several established road runners who continue to boost the brand’s reputation.

One athlete who continues to do just that is the current Mountain Running World Cup holder, Andrew Douglas, who re-signs for 2020.

“It’s been a real privilege to be supported by HOKA over the past few years, so it was a no-brainer for me to re-sign for 2020,” said the Scottish-based Douglas.

“I’ve been a big fan since I wore my first pair of Cliftons back in 2015, and HOKA have impressed me each time they bring out their innovative new designs and grow their range, which as someone who dabbles in road, cross country, trail as well as my main discipline of mountain running, it’s greatly appreciated to have such a variety to benefit from!”

Download the full list of 2020 HOKA ONE ONE EMEA athletes

Photo credits: James Mitchell, PEIGNÉE VERTICALE, Jacky Everaerdt (Activ’Images), Getty, Tyler Shaw and Huw Fairclough

The masterminds behind the Fly Collection

In February 2018, we introduced the Fly Collection — an entirely new collection that looks different than anything we’ve done before, but has the same feel you know and love. So, where did this idea come from?

“Creating shoes is almost like a sport. You can always get better. You have to be able to adapt and change your strategy. You’re trying to solve a problem and it’s just that idea of ‘it’s never done,’” says Gretchen Weimer, one of the creators of the Fly Collection. As the vice president of product at HOKA and with over 25 years of experience in the footwear industry, Gretchen helped create the brand’s revolutionary collection. She describes herself as single-minded and competitive, two qualities that have pushed her to where she is today.

Beating the competition

Hailing from Buffalo, NY, Gretchen ran cross country in high school. “I went to an all girls’ school and they had just started a cross country team. But we didn’t have anyone to train with,” Gretchen says. “Our partner school was all boys’, so we’d have training days with the boys’ team and we all competed in the same races. That was really wild.”

“I remember running in a race and encouraging one of the boys from the other school I was competing against. I was encouraging him and I was beating him. He was so pissed off,” Gretchen says, laughing, “I knew I could beat him. I’m super competitive. I was like, ‘I’ll be nice to you, but I’m gonna beat you.’”

“Creating shoes is almost like a sport. You can always get better. You have to be able to adapt and change your strategy. You’re trying to solve a problem and it’s just that idea of ‘it’s never done’.” Gretchen Weimer

After a year or two of cross country, Gretchen found her true passion, rowing, and she worked hard to became a world-class single sculler. Single scullers race individually rather than with a team. After making it through the Olympic Trials, she was in the Olympic Selection Camp before eventually being cut.

Climbing the career ladder

During her training for the Olympic Trials, Gretchen worked for a financial services company in a specialty program designed for athlete job opportunities. “When I didn’t make it to the Olympics, they offered me a job in their broker training program. And I was like, ‘Hell, no,’” Gretchen says, “I’d spent the last ten years of my life in a wet T-shirt and shorts. If you can’t see yourself doing something, it’s probably never gonna happen.”

Gretchen tracked down a sales rep and edged her way into a job as a technical sales rep before moving into a sales position, then becoming a product line sales manager, then finally landing as an account executive. “As an account executive, I was managing the outdoor and women’s lifestyle footwear for a retailer. And that was my first taste of creating product. It was me, the buyer, the designer and the developers all working together to take the stories from the marketing team and give it to them in a different package,” Gretchen says.

Later, she managed small-scale women’s casual footwear brands and men’s and women’s performance outdoor brands. I ask how she’s stayed interested in such a specific topic for her entire career. “Being an athlete was my life for so long. And working around other athletes and being in a competitive environment just made me feel like, ‘Oh. These are my people,’” Gretchen says.

Turning ideas into reality

Joining the HOKA team in early 2016, Gretchen and her team had a vision for the Fly Collection. “It’s never one person doing all of it. I have a team, a really talented team. And we’re always working to tap into other people’s experiences and try and create something from all the parts that we have,” she says.

“With HOKA, the idea for the brand came from this fundamental concept of geometry and foam and how the two interact. And we’re trying things like how we can make someone go faster by tweaking the geometry. Or make them more comfortable by tweaking the foam. It’s finding what the levers are and how you can use them to tune the product,” Gretchen says.

“It’s never one person doing all of it. I have a team, a really talented team. And we’re always working to tap into other people’s experiences and try and create something from all the parts that we have.” Gretchen Weimer

Basically, creating product is problem solving. It’s taking different pieces of information and data and then combining them to create a shoe. Then, working with the designers to make those innovative ideas into a reality. Pushing limits is where Gretchen thrives and she was able to channel that into the Fly Collection. “We kept wondering, was it too much of a leap? Or just enough to make people uncomfortable?” Gretchen says.

The idea for the Fly Collection started with two shoes that were very successful, the Clayton and the Vanquish, but they didn’t fit within the other long-lasting legacies of the brand. Names like Bondi and Clifton are almost synonymous with HOKA. “We took two shoes and amplified them by talking about them in a different way. They represented something and we put them in the Fly Collection to tell a story about why and what they represent,” Gretchen says.

As part of HOKA’s DNA, flight seemed like a perfect way to tie everything together. After all, when translated, the brand name loosely means “to fly over the earth” in Maori. “We went after this notion of flight and created a story around it. And added another shoe to round it all out — everything is better in threes,” Gretchen says. So, they created the Mach using the DNA of the Clayton, the Elevon from the Vanquish and then added the Cavu for a full set.

Looking into the future

The result of all this? Three shoes that are incredibly lightweight and still offer the signature cushioning HOKA is known for. And this revolutionary collection is just the beginning of a new wave for the brand. Not to give away too many secrets, but they’re currently hard at work to create another new collection — this time with hiking.

“HOKA was born on the mountain and then we moved to the road and in some cases the track. Now, we’re going back up the mountain,” Gretchen says. “Especially since there’s a bridge from trail running, to vertical running, to hiking and fast hiking. We’re trying to take it in a natural way to the mountain.”

We’re constantly finding ways to make improvements and think outside the box to define what’s possible in a running shoe. Our brand was born out of innovation and we’re still continuing to do that today — with Gretchen and her team at the forefront.

Check out the Fly Collection today.

How Shirin Gerami sparked a girls’ sporting revolution in Iran

Triathlete Shirin Gerami’s persistence in pushing Iran to allow her, as a woman, to compete led to a win that transcends sport. Her journey is the latest in our Huck x HOKA series, looking at mavericks who found a new perspective through running.

The night before racing in a triathlon most people keep things fairly relaxed. They’ll pack their bags, perhaps eat a giant plate of pasta, piled up high like a pyramid, and have an early night. But before her first World Championships Shirin Gerami was doing none of those things.

Instead, she was rushing around trying to get government permission just to compete in the event. To represent Iran, she needed the okay from the Ministry of Sports there and for the past six months the answer had been a consistent and resounding “No.”

Then suddenly, hours before the race, she got an email confirming she was allowed to compete and Shirin Gerami became the first-ever woman to represent Iran in a world triathlon competition. A mould-breaking moment.

Breaking the mould

Her journey to that point was as improbable as it is inspiring. Starting with the fact she had zero interest in sport as a child, which isn’t surprising because in Iran, where she was born and lived from the ages of 10 to 15, girls aren’t encouraged to play sport. “In the schools I went to, phys-ed was quite weak,” she says. “It was never a seriously sporty session. It was more girls sitting around a courtyard reading books.”

She did however love nature and hiking. “I was around 13 when my mum’s cousin, who always loved hiking and the outdoors, told me I should go hiking with her in the [Alborz] mountains, which Tehran [where she lived] is at the foot of. She seemed to know every single person there and she introduced me and said, ‘If you ever see her, take care of her.’”

After that, Shirin would go hiking in the mountains before school most days, leaving at 4 or 5 a.m. in her school uniform. “I’d come down smelly and sweaty and go to school,” she laughs.

When she was 18, she and two friends spontaneously took a hiking trip from Tehran to the Caspian Sea. They were having an amazing time until the fifth night when they got attacked in their tent by a group of men with “large daggers and knives fit to cut off the carcass of sheep.”

The experience was transformative for Shirin, causing her to be diagnosed with a mental illness, but also helping her realise that sport was her way back. “Anytime I’ve gone through a down or hard times,” she says, “it’s always been sports and the outdoors that helped me come back up again from the depths of downness.”

Starting out in triathlon

She went to university at Durham in England, and in her final year found the courage to try triathlon. “I didn’t consider myself sporty in anyway. Triathlon seemed totally impossible and out of my reach but I like an adventure…”

Still, she was completely intimidated at the start. “I was the last person in the slowest lane in the pool, I had to walk my bike up the hill and I was the one who was getting lapped on the track,” she says.

But she kept going and made progress. The thought of racing terrified Shirin but she’d made good friends in the sport and they persuaded her to try. At each stage of her first race, she expected to be stopped for going too slowly. But she never was.

Was she euphoric at the finish line? “It was more the realisation that we underestimate ourselves daily. We don’t show up to the start line; we give up before having even tried.”

She moved to London for work and joined a triathlon club “for the fun and love of it.” Then ahead of the ITU World Championships, which in 2013 were taking place in London, she was chatting with some triathlon friends about the various nationalities that would be represented in the race. “We all laughed and joked and said, ‘Iran, haha well that’s not going to be possible.’ But that night I thought, ‘Hang on. You dismissed something, without actually exploring it.’”

Making the grade

The next morning she called up the triathlon federation in Iran and asked why exactly women couldn’t race. After many questions, the first tangible thing she found was it had to do with clothing and Iran’s non-negotiable stance on women covering up. Shirin thought this would be a simple thing to solve, but it took her six months of sourcing various outfits, and pictures and emails and flights to Iran before the Ministry of Sports delivered that magical “Yes.”

Race day was the first time she’d worn her sanctioned outfit, which included a hijab. The kit was not the easiest thing to compete in, but in that first race, Shirin wasn’t worrying about that. “The relief of getting the permission was beyond anything, I wasn’t thinking, ‘Oh it feels a little heavy.’”

Four years on from that ground-breaking race, she has many more triathlons under her belt including the iconic Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, which she did last year. Thirteen hours of hardcore exercise over 140.6 miles, all in a hijab, covered to her wrists and toes.

She still feels there’s room for improvement in terms of kit that women can compete in fairly and safely while adhering to strict Islamic codes. “Some people find arts therapy, some people find sports therapy… I dream of a world where everyone could access sports — should they want to. And if clothing really is the area that is stopping you from accessing sport, then I think that’s something that needs to be looked at.”

But Shirin’s legacy is already in full effect. She’s inspired women all over the world, and in 2017, Iran sent a team of female triathletes to the Central Asian Championships for the first time, which was “very uplifting” for her.

“I hope these opportunities will continue growing,” she says. “In the UK, I rock up to whatever club I want to join and start training. It’s as a simple as that. Whereas if I’d been a girl living in Iran, I would not for one second have known what a triathlon was. And I’d have missed out on the confidence, empowerment and joy it’s brought to my life.”

Huck is a youth culture channel. It celebrates and explores independent culture — people and movements that paddle against the flow. Find out more about HUCK.

Learn more about the innovative Clifton trainers Shirin wears.

How running helped Lucy Campbell surf like a pro

With an eye on the 2020 Olympics, surfer Lucy Campbell is hoping her athletic instincts will pay off on a quest for gold. Lucy’s story is the latest in our Huck x HOKA series, looking at mavericks who found a new perspective through running.

When most people go surfing, they don’t have a plan. They’re out there to ride whatever waves come their way; they’re happy go with the flow. Lucy Campbell, however, has a different approach. When she goes surfing, she likes to set challenges for herself.

The 22-year-old pro surfer from Devon, who hopes to qualify for the Olympics in 2020, often tells herself: “I’m not getting out of the water until I’ve done three turns on a wave, or until I’ve done a proper carve where I’ve remembered to put my hand here, or looked back at the whitewater, or whatever.”

Measuring progression

Such a habit is a legacy from Lucy’s days as a competitive runner. She was one of the best young middle distance athletes in the UK until foot injuries forced her to quit. She still runs for fun, but one of the things she misses most about her athletics training was how easy it was to measure progression.

“I miss racing against the clock,” she says. “That feeling of improvement, of pushing yourself, and knowing next time you’re going to be better. With surfing it’s tricky to know if you’re improving.”

Her biggest frustrations with the sport are the vagaries of quantifying good surfing – the way one judge might score a wave as a 10, while another might say it’s an eight – as well as relying on the ever-shifting sea conditions. “There are so many different variables in surfing that are so far from your control,” she says, “With athletics, it was just me, my trainers and the track. Just go for it. I liked that.”

Competitive spirit

Lucy has been running for as long as she can remember. As a child, she used to race her older brothers along the beach after school. “I was always really competitive with them,” she says. “They were quite a bit older, but I still tried as hard as I could to keep up with them. I don’t think I ever really thought about the fact they were boys, I just thought I should be as fast as them.”

“I miss racing against the clock. That feeling of improvement, of pushing yourself, and knowing next time you’re going to be better.” Lucy Campbell

It’s a mentality she’s also brought to her surfing. She joined the local lifesaving club at a young age and when she was around 10, her dad took her out surfing. “I had a swimming hat and goggles on,” she says with a laugh. “He pushed me into waves and I loved it from the start.” But she’s never thought of herself as a female surfer — she just happens to be a woman who surfs.

“Growing up, there weren’t many girls who surfed on the same beach as me. So naturally, I surfed with a lot of boys; my brothers, or the locals boys that surfed. I think that helped push me as well. I just saw them doing things and thought, ‘I want to do that.’ It never occurred to me that I couldn’t.”

Headstrong and determined

Lucy’s self-belief has been key to both her running and surfing success. She once raced in the English Schools’ Athletics Championships with a searing pain in her foot – one so strong that she almost passed out. But she kept running to the end, telling herself it was only a few minutes to get through. After the race, she found out she’d been racing with a broken foot.

“Thank goodness there was something really wrong and it wasn’t just me!” she says now, adding: “But even if they’d said I couldn’t race, I probably would have done anyway.”

Being headstrong has helped with her surfing many times too. Like the time in Bryon Bay when she got stuck in a narrow channel while a big set rolled in. As the waves smashed her into some rocks, she had to stay calm and keep paddling. Eventually, she made her way to safety.

“I tried as hard as I could to keep up with them. I don’t think I ever really thought about the fact they were boys, I just thought I should be as fast as them.” Lucy Campbell

That dogged determination is an essential trait when you’re trying to be a professional surfer and you hail from Devon, rather than Hawaii, California or Australia. Instead of perfecting your moves in consistent warm-water waves under sunny skies, you’re faced with a frigid-cold wind-blown mess and trying to manoeuvre in a thick wetsuit and hood rather than a bikini or board shorts.

“It’s definitely a lot harder here as we haven’t got the same wave quality as a lot of other countries,” she says. “If the waves are good, I’ll be in for five or six hours a day. But even if they’re not good, I’ll still get in and give it a go.”

Huck is a youth culture channel. It celebrates and explores independent culture — people and movements that paddle against the flow. Find out more about HUCK.

Learn more about the FLY MACH TRAINERS Lucy wears.