PUMA’s FAAS Collection Brings Jamaican Speed and Style to Malaysia PUMA Unveils Faas Trainers, Giving Runners a Naturally Responsive Ride; Offers Malaysian’s Opportunity to Compete with Asia’s fastest and meet Usain Bolt
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA; July 15 2011 – PUMA Running is introducing it’s latest collection – FAAS – to Malaysia’s fastest athletes and most stylist fashionistas alike!
Through it’s upcoming PUMA FAAS TEST Challenge Road Show the company marks the introduction of the new FAAS range of trainers that are designed for both style and performance. The Faas line is inspired by Usain Bolt – one of the world’s fastest men – and the Jamaican culture of producing world class runners who do it with speed and style.
The Faas range features bright, bold colors with unique overlays and design details for each style. PUMA Running’s new Faas Range brings the joy back into running with increased speed and performance, along with some ‘check-me-out’ designs.
The Faas Range gets its name from the Jamaican word for fast, and the name fits. The Faas Range is grounded in performance and features a biomechanical design technology exclusive to PUMA, called BioRide, that provides a naturally responsive ride – helping runners get into their own rhythm for increased speed and performance. Inspired by the learnings from PUMA’s long association with Bolt and research into movement, foot placement and the overall running skills of the world’s best runners – the collection is placed in three distinct variants: ROCKER, FLEX and GROOVE.
FAAS ROCKER – For the most demanding of stylistas and runners alike, the Faas Rocker line offers a smooth touchdown and effortless toe-off that helps you build and maintain momentum. This helps you get up and going and keeps you moving forward all the time!
FAAS FLEX – For natural foot movement and added responsiveness. The Faas Flex collection encourages the feel of a natural ride through flex grooves that are added throughout the midsole of the trainer. These allow your foot to flex naturally, providing added responsiveness that you don’t get with traditional running shoes. It also adds that element of style in your gait when you’re out and about in your Flex!
FAAS GROOVE – For natural stability that responds to your individual biomechanics, An everyday neutral trainer with more cushioning the Faas Groove line is great for tempo runs and races, or as an everyday minimalist trainer and fashion statement.Why FAAS works
PUMA Running knows every runner is unique and what one runner needs may not be necessary for another.
This has resulted in the brand going on a quest to uncover the secret of why Jamaicans are the fastest sprinters on the planet. The brand is intent on identifying all the elements and ingredients – when blended together – that create a one-of-a-kind speed explosion. Whether it’s Jamaica’s climate, the laid-back lifestyle, the food, the music, the dancing or the running, Faaslab is a living laboratory to discover the science behind what makes Jamaicans so fast. And Usain Bolt is the product and the prime specimen of what can emerge from this environment. Through Faaslab, PUMA examines the possibility of harnessing these essential ingredients, replicating them and packaging them into the Faas product line and the next Usain Bolt.
To help PUMA unlock the mystery of what makes Jamaicans so fast, the sport lifestyle brand enlisted, Alfred ‘Frano’ Francis. ‘Frano’ is a person inextricably intertwined with Jamaican Athletics. He authentically embodies all the best of Jamaica, part wise man, part historian, part anthropologist, part visionary, part Rastafarian, part runner. Frano helped PUMA come up with the informal science behind Faas: a little Faas product, some Jamaican culture, and a lot of Bolt!
To help runners find the best Faas style to suit their needs, PUMA has assigned each style a number, ranging from 100 to 1000. The lower number models, such as the Faas 250, have less cushioning and less structure, providing a lightweight, fast-paced trainer. As the number gets higher, additional cushioning and structure is added to the shoe. The higher number shoes, like the Faas 500, are perfect everyday neutral trainers.
So why does FAAS work? First, the best runners reduce their amount of time on the ground, making for faster runs and faster times. The Faas Range incorporates a continuous, rocker-shape outsole that provides smooth touchdown and effortless transition, providing runners with a natural ride and less time on the ground.
Second, they do not waste motion. 360 degree flex grooves are placed in key areas throughout the Faas shoes; these flex grooves respond specifically to how the runner’s foot moves, providing a truly unique and responsive ride.
Lastly, these world-renowned athletes are incredibly aware of the ground, which allows the foot to react instinctively to keep them stable. The Faas shoes have a horizontal groove that runs the lateral side of the shoe. Regardless of how a runner’s foot hits the ground, this groove will provide them with natural stability.
For more information, visit www.puma.com/running or www.facebook.com/PumaMalaysia.
ABOUT USAIN BOLT
The world will be watching Usain Bolt in London 2012 to see if he will break his own record in the 100m and 200m relays. At 24, Bolt has emerged as the one of the world’s most talented Track and Field athletes, winning three gold medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and smashing two world records in the 100m (9:58) and 200m (19:19) at the World Championships in Berlin in 2009. PUMA, like many Bolt enthusiasts, believes the best is yet to come.
Usain Bolt and the entire Jamaican Track and Field team will wear uniforms designed by Cedella Marley, fashion designer and daughter of Jamaican reggae icon Bob Marley.
ABOUT PUMA
PUMA is one of the world’s leading Sportlifestyle companies that designs and develops footwear, apparel and accessories. It is committed to working in ways that contribute to the world by supporting Creativity, SAFE Sustainability and Peace, and by staying true to the principles of being Fair, Honest, Positive and Creative in decisions made and actions taken. PUMA starts in Sport and ends in Fashion. Its Sport Performance and Lifestyle labels include categories such as Football, Running, Motorsports, Golf and Sailing. Sport Fashion features collaborations with renowned designer labels such as Alexander McQueen, Mihara Yasuhiro and Sergio Rossi. The PUMA Group owns the brands PUMA, Cobra Golf and Tretorn. The company, which was founded in 1948, distributes its products in more than 120 countries, employs more than 9,000 people worldwide and has headquarters in Herzogenaurach/Germany, Boston, London and Hong Kong. For more information, please visit http://www.puma.com