We asked ourselves not long ago: what does it really mean to write sports history? We answered by invoking the idea of breaking barriers, of redrawing the map of human potential. The kind of act that turns physical effort into cultural moment. And few examples speak more clearly than ‘Chasing 100,’ the adidas-led initiative that reframed what the human body can do, with a stopwatch ticking.

That lens brought us directly to the high-speed loop of the Nardò Technical Center, where Sibusiso Kubheka stopped the clock at 5:59:20, doing something long believed to be impossible. A singular performance, yes, but also the product of something larger: the interplay between athlete and technology, between individual will and collective innovation. We came to see it not just as a race, but as the meeting point between raw endurance and the engineering vision of a brand that’s made boundary-pushing part of its DNA.

Now, through the voices of those who shaped this moment, we explore what truly happened behind the numbers. There’s Sibusiso Kubheka, the South African runner who turned six hours into a symbolic threshold. There’s Aleksandr Sorokin, a living legend of the ultra-distance world and a vital part of the ‘Chasing 100’ ecosystem. And there’s Harry Miles, adidas’s Director of Footwear Innovation, who helped build the tools that made the impossible possible: the cutting-edge Evo Prime X. Through their words, we enter a new dimension of performance—where limits are not only tested, but reimagined.

Sibusiso Kubheka

Did you ever imagine you’d break a barrier like the 6-hour mark over 100 kilometers? What thoughts and emotions ran through your mind during the challenge? And what did you feel at the finish line, when you realized you had accomplished something once considered unthinkable?

“Breaking the record was a lifelong dream and desire for me. When I crossed the finish line, I couldn’t believe it, and I was overwhelmed with happiness and emotion.”

‘Chasing 100’ was also a feat of adidas sports engineering at its finest—placing you and the other athletes in a position to achieve the impossible. Can you describe the real impact and support you received from adidas throughout this journey? What were the most significant factors the brand brought to the table, specifically in your experience?

 “I want to extend my gratitude to adidas for their incredible support. They provided me with everything I needed, from apparel to shoes, which played a crucial role in my success.”

We saw you raise the South African flag during the celebrations. How important is it for you to have added such a historic record to your country’s story? And what message do you hope to pass on to the next generations following in your footsteps?

“Seeing my fellow South Africans celebrating my achievement brought me immense joy. It was a blessing not just for me, but for my family as well.”

 What does running mean to you today? And what’s next for you after ‘Chasing 100’?

“Running is more than just a sport to me; it’s my life. It has transformed me in profound ways, and I couldn’t imagine myself without it. Running is an integral part of who I am.”

Aleksandar Sorokin

‘Chasing 100’. In light of your career and your world records, what has this distance meant to you—and what does it continue to mean today?

“Chasing 100 showed that it’s possible to run 100 km in under six hours. This was a huge goal for many athletes, and I’m proud that our team made it happen. It’s an important milestone for ultrarunning, and I’m really happy to have been part of it.”

What was it like to experience the Nardò event firsthand—where on one hand, you achieved a new personal best, and on the other, witnessed for the first time an athlete, Sbusiso Kubheka, break the 6-hour barrier?

“It was an incredible event. I’m very grateful to adidas for inviting me to take part. Of course, the athlete runs the race, but modern technologies help push human limits further. Thanks to these innovations, I believe the six-hour barrier will also be broken in regular competitions in the future.”

The achievement at Nardò feels like a natural outcome of adidas’ contemporary culture—where human limits are not endpoints but chapters to be rewritten, thanks not only to the talent of carefully selected athletes, but also to technological innovation and futuristic design. What does your connection with the three stripes represent to you?

“It’s very important for both athletes and the sport as a whole. We can see how collaboration between athletes and technology leads to amazing results. Thanks to adidas innovations, someone finally ran under six hours — and that brings a lot of attention to ultrarunning. I’m very grateful for their support and partnership.”

After all the records, all the kilometers—what is the current state of your relationship with running today? 

“I still have some ‘unfinished business’ with certain distances. For example, in the 24-hour race, I want to hit 200 miles — I’m at 319 km now, just short of that mark. I believe I can do it. In the future, I’d also like to move to even longer distances, because as speed declines with age, endurance tends to remain.”

Harry Miles – adidas Director Footwear Innovation

‘Chasing 100’ was the ultimate expression of adidas’ current cultural direction—an intersection of cutting-edge technology and design, elite athletes, and the highest form of sporting ambition. In this state-of-the-art vision of the brand, what role does footwear innovation play, and how did it impact the achievement in Nardò?

“Chasing 100 was an opportunity to see what’s possible when we work at speed, break new boundaries in design, and test new possibilities in footwear and apparel. Kubheka’s history-defining performance – achieving something no one has ever come close to – is an immense achievement that we are incredibly proud of. This is true testament to the power of combining adidas Innovation with the very best of athletic prowess to push the limits of human capability forwards.”

At Athleta, we always like to focus on the personal dimension. Could you tell us what running—and sport in general—mean to you in your life? And what about footwear? How did these paths come to cross in your journey?

“I’ve always been around sport. Both my parents were elite athletes, and I still try my best to compete at a high level to keep sharp. The athlete mentality of winning, breaking records and challenging yourself every day to be better is infinitely compatible with the work we do at adidas, to provide only the best product for our athletes, enabling them to achieve things we thought were impossible.”

How does it feel to know that you played a role—together with the entire adidas team behind ‘Chasing 100’—in a record of historic significance? And what drives you, and adidas as a whole, to keep pushing beyond existing technologies to unlock new performance possibilities?

“It’s hugely rewarding. At adidas, we’re driven by our commitment to creating only the best for the athlete. This means innovating at speed to create products that help the fastest on the planet get even faster. Only the best for the athlete is a legacy built by our founder and something we hold ourselves very strongly accountable to delivering, at speed.”

In this ongoing evolution of technology and design, how crucial is the human element—the direct contribution of athletes, their feedback, their sensations?

“Working alongside our athletes is a crucial part of the process. These are some of the best endurance athletes in the world, so their ability to articulate what they were feeling — even tiny differences in energy return, stability or grip — gave us invaluable insights. Every round of testing pushed us to refine the shoe further. The Evo Prime X you saw at Chasing 100 is the result of that close collaboration.”