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Nike has its hand in every single aspect of the sporting world but at the end of the day, The Swoosh is still a running company at heart. The International Running Pack, developed for the track and field championships in Tokyo next month, pays homage to that half-century legacy, pulling classic colorways from the 1970s for modern favorites.
A standout in the pack, the Alphafly Next%3 is inspired by the 1978 running shoe, The Sting. Replicating the orange and green colorway, the Alphafly 3 features a faux-weathered ZoomX midsole and Zoom Air unit. An Atomknit upper mixes reddish orange in the forefoot and lace loops with aloe verde green as it moves to the heel, all broken up by a subtle white Swoosh.
The Sting was a state-of-the-art running shoe in 1978, and has continued to pop up in Nike catalogs thanks to its iconic debut colorway. The shoe was retroed in 2007 as part of a pack of original runners made in collaboration with Junya Watanabe (Comme des Garçons) and then served as inspiration for a Nike D/MS/X Waffle colorway in 2020.
The Nike Alphafly Next%3 International Running Pack will be released exclusively at the Union Running Dept. by Nike in Tokyo on August 30, 2025, followed by a Japan-wide release on Sept 5, 2025, and a global release through select Nike retailers in-store and online September 10, 2025. Available in men’s sizes, the retail price is set at $305. Download the Sole Retriever mobile app to stay updated on the latest releases, raffles, news, and more in the sneaker and streetwear world.
Zach Harris is a writer based in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Vice, Complex, High Times, and more. He is obsessed with skateboarding and bowling. He is still looking for his first 300. For tips, reviews, and anything in size 10.5 - zach.h@soleretriever.com
