The Spirit Of Steve Prefontaine Lives On In The Nike Vaporfly 4

Few figures are both as influential and as tragic in Nike lore as Steve Prefontaine, a preternatural track talent that brought legitimacy and increased notoriety... © Sneaker News, 2025. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us The post The Spirit Of Steve Prefontaine Lives On In The Nike Vaporfly 4 appeared first on Sneaker News. The post The Spirit Of Steve Prefontaine Lives On In The Nike Vaporfly 4 appeared first on Sneaker News.

Few figures are both as influential and as tragic in Nike lore as Steve Prefontaine, a preternatural track talent that brought legitimacy and increased notoriety to the then burgeoning sportswear brand. As the brand is wont to do, they’ve made continuous reference to the Oregon athlete throughout their rise to become the business titan we now know. With Nike Running teeing off a new chapter in recent months, there’s no better time to acknowledge their origins, exactly the case with the Nike Vaporfly 4 “Pre Montreal.”

Though his passing predated the actual 1976 Olympic games, the Pre Montreal nonetheless remains the Swoosh model most readily associated with Prefontaine, a retail release queued up to sync with the international competition. To commemorate that shoe and the runner more generally, Beaverton creatives graft its USA colorway onto the Vaporfly 4, itself in the modern canon as a chapter in the groundbreaking supershoe series. Original Nike branding and the curved Swoosh from the shoe also enter the mix. Finally, to denote the history at play, a sepia faux-aged treatment graces the back half of the supersized ZoomX sole.

Nike Pre Montreal Track Spikes Vintage 2

Nike Pre Montreal Track Spikes Vintage 3

Nike Pre Montreal Track Spikes Vintage 1

Nike Pre Montreal Track Spikes Vintage 5

Nike Pre Montreal Track Spikes Vintage 4

While this undoubtedly marks the most sentimental nod, this continues a series of Nike Running releases that pay homage to its forebears, last visited with a four-pack that pulled from the Zoom Streak Spectrum.

Expect the Nike Vaporfly 4 to hit Nike.com and partnering retailers as a part of the brand’s Summer/Fall 2025 slate. A $260 retail price is likely.