Women's wrestling has grown at an incredible rate, and that growth has strengthened wrestling as a whole. Now ASICS is releasing a shoe specifically designed for women, the MATBLAZER™, the first wrestling shoe specifically designed for women.

The crew at ASICS recognized that participation numbers in women's wrestling have grown at a rapid clip. As of May, 2021, 32 states had girls' state wrestling championships, and since 2009, girls' high school wrestling participation has grown by over 21,000 athletes.

The growth of women's wrestling is good for wrestling as a whole, but until now, there hasn't been a shoe uniquely designed for this important segment of the sport. Madeline Clarke, a Footwear Merchandising and Product Manager at ASICS, pointed out this incongruity:

"This growing segment of athletes has been able to master their craft with product that was not necessarily created with their needs in mind."

Yesterday, ASICS announced steps to address the specific footwear needs of female wrestlers with the release of its newest wrestling shoe, the MATBLAZER™.

ASICS wants to support women in wrestling and designed this shoe with women's feet in mind. The MATBLAZER's differentiator is how the shoe fits on female feet. Because the typical female foot is wider at the ball of the foot and gets narrower toward the mid-foot and heel, the shoe's split sole combined with its asymmetrical lacing system allows the for a tighter fit in the midfoot. The open mesh upper also keeps the foot cool by increasing air flow.

This light-weight shoe does not lack in quality. The split-tooling design for the MATBLAZER™ is the same ASICS used for the JB Elite. Still, the shoe is priced at $95 to serve the training and competition needs of women in wrestling from entry level to elite.

This shoe was tested by the girls at the Doughgirl Wrestling Club in Lowell, Massachusetts. Its iridescent stripe and marbled soles give the MATBLAZER™ a unique design, and each pair comes with two sets of laces to allow athletes to customize the look of their own pair.

ASICS already has a singlet designed for women along with a two-piece compression set. The MATBLAZER™ is the newest product in a line of wrestling gear designed to support the women who play an instrumental role in supporting the sport of wrestling.