While the Cortez was a staple within the running community, 1976 saw it explode into pop culture. In an episode of Charlie’s Angels, the actress Farah Fawcett can be seen skating in a women’s version of the leather Nike Cortez titled the ‘Señorita Cortez’. Following the release, sales of the women’s sizing of the sneaker grew massively, with the image of Fawcett becoming iconic not only in Nike’s history, but sneaker history as a whole. Despite the name change, Onitsuka Tiger does still use the ‘Mexico’ name in their ‘Mexico 66’ running sneaker, perhaps a nod to the original 1966 TG-24. However, that isn’t to say that Nike isn’t gearing up to celebrate the classic model in the latter half of 2022. Having re-released the women's ‘Señorita Cortez’ earlier this year as well as sharing official looks at the Nike SB ‘BRSB’ (AKA Blue Ribbon SB) which is a clear nod to Nike’s origins with the OG Cortez colourway and silhouette, it may simply be a matter of time. Countless colourways and iterations of the Cortez have been released over the years, including a magnitude of colourways and materials as well as other combinations similar to Sir Elton John’s mashup with Fragment creating the Roshe Cortez in 2015 which combined the Cortez and now infamous Roshe Run and even a high top chukka variant of the Cortez releasing the same year. Italian international men's gold medalist Stefano Baldini and Japanese international women’s marathon gold medalist Mizuki Noguchi wore ASICS' marathon shoes. 3. Saori Yoshida, 2012.

By 1975, three variants of the Nike Cortez were in production including the now-classic leather version as well as a suede variant and nylon finish - the nylon weighing in at around 0.34 KG, ‘the worst lightest running shoe’ as proclaimed by Nike at the time. On September 29, 2007, Onitsuka passed away from heart failure at a hospital in Kobe, Japan. The quote “if you fail, keep going until you succeed” is one way to describe how Mr. Onitsuka lived his extraordinary life. He was 89. Kihachiro Onitsuka’s 100th birthday, 2018. ASICS' founder, Kihachiro Onitsuka, believed being active creates a better lifestyle. Onitsuka lived to inspire, support and encourage everyone to embrace an active lifestyle. He wanted his brand to be accessible for all sports consumers ranging from beginners to professionals. The story of Kihachiro Onitsuka Onitsuka Co. was originally founded in 1949, later merging with GTO Co. and JELENK Co. in 1977. Following the merger, the company officially formed “ASICS”. Today, under the umbrella of the ASICS company are the ASICS and Onitsuka Tiger brands. ASICS historical timelineIn remembrance of Onituska, ASICS released “100th Birthday Commemorative” models on May 29, 2018. The products were designed with a sunflower that Onitsuka painted. This line includes the ASICS’ GEL-QUANTUM™ 360 KO100, the ASICS Tiger GEL-MAI™ KO100 and the Onitsuka Tiger CORSAIR™ KO100 running shoes, as well as a line of apparel. The future of ASICS This product was worn in various professional sporting events, thus paving the way for Onitsuka to build a global sporting empire. Are ASICS and Onitsuka the same company? Finally, in 1974, the court case between Nike and Onitsuka Tiger was passed in favour of Nike, allowing them to continue with the ‘Cortez’ name, but ruling that both brands were still able to create a product with the same silhouette. As such, Tiger changed the name of their variant to “Tiger Corsair” which is still available today. During the late ‘60s, the Cortez wasn’t made of leather as we know it today. During its time being manufactured by Blue Ribbon Sports and Tiger, the shoe was made out of nylon resin that aimed to create a lightweight feel that still provides the ample support needed for a long-distance running sneaker. In an advert seen from this time by BRS (Blue Ribbon Sports), they call the technology ‘Swoosh Fiber’. While this is not mentioned as an inspiration behind the Nike ‘Swoosh’ we all know today, the name does seem to reference the iconic Nike logo in a way that seems too close to be a coincidence.

Before Nike, came Blue Ribbon Sports. Founded by Phil Knight and the Olympic running coach Bill Bowerman, Blue Ribbon Sports was working alongside Onitsuka Tiger to distribute their sneakers within the US from Japan (a story best told within Phil Knight’s book ‘Shoe Dog’). After the duo had worked with Onitsuka Tiger (who also owns ASICS) for two years, Bowerman was allowed to utilise his designs and release a marathon-running sneaker of his own in conjunction with the Japanese brand. Yoshida, a Japanese freestyle wrestler, wore ASICS' wrestling footwear and singlet to win a gold medal in international women’s wrestling. 4. Vissel Kobe, 2019. While Nike hasn't made as much of a point of celebrating the anniversary of its oldest silhouette, other brands that are collaborating with Nike are set to release projects that are worth taking note of. The sneaker played such a huge role in the film that they have since become synonymous with it much like the Air Jordan 4s worn by Spike Lee in the 1989 basketball film ‘Do The Right Thing’.During this time period, ASICS created innovative products used by professional athletes around the world. ASICS champions in the 2000’s 1. Naoko Takahashi, 2000. Before the case was over, Bowerman had created the Nike Cortez by switching out the Onitsuka ‘Waves’ inspired by the waves on the Kobe shores, to the iconic Nike ‘Swoosh’ which was designed by Carolyn Davidson, inspired by the shape of a running motion, with the brand selling it under their own name in 1972. Fast forward to 1994, Nike is continuing to dominate the sneaker market. It also saw the release of one of, if not the, biggest sneaker moments in history. The film ‘Forrest Gump’ starring Tom Hanks saw a scene in which the main character, Forrest, is given a pair of the classic Nike’s by his love interest, Jennie. The scene is perfect product placement and sees Forrest going onto run across the United States wearing the sneaker, further advertising the running benefits they still held.

ASICS grew from a two-person team to one of the world’s most influential sports brands. ASICS was built on the idea of “Anima sana in corpore sano,” a Latin phrase which translates to "a sound mind in a sound body". This philosophy became a legacy that remains an essential part of the brand to this day. Acting almost as a final jab at adidas, the Cortez name was derived from the Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes who led an expedition which brought the fall of the Aztec Empire in the 1500s. marks the 50th anniversary of one of Nike’s greatest sneakers, the Cortez. An iconic silhouette, the Cortez has evolved from being a technologically advanced running shoe (at the time it was released) to becoming a pop culture icon, finally resting on being an all-time classic. Vissel Kobe is a Japanese professional football club who won a championship in the 2019 season. Their home, away, third and goalkeeper shirts are all being designed and made by ASICS. 5. Novac Djokovic, 2019. During the ‘80s, the Nike Cortez continued to be a huge success in pop culture, particularly finding its footing within the music industry. In the mid-'70s - early ‘80s Sir Elton John worked closely with Nike to create his own Cortez sneaker which featured the midsole design of the 1979 Nike Roadrunner.

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The following year, at the Chicago Sporting Goods Association, Nike officially released three silhouettes to launch their new brand. The three silhouettes included the Marathon, Boston and the Cortez. At this time, Nike then released an advert for the Nike Cortez that included what they called ‘The Cortez Story’, which completely cut any mention of their previous partnership with Onitsuka Tiger. It was also here, that Nike released the first leather version of the Nike Cortez. Since its release, the Nike Cortez has seemed to dip out of favour from the mainstream with attention moving to basketball sneakers and Air Max as time passed. Nevertheless, Nike has been able to keep the spirit of its very first silhouette alive, with many still holding it in high regard. Who is Kihachiro Onitsuka? Onitsuka was a military veteran who eventually decided to venture into the shoe business. He began making footwear for top athletes under the business name "Onitsuka Co." This company started small with just a handful of employees and initially sought to produce basketball shoes.