Nike Free is a minimalist running shoe. It was introduced in 2005 after Nike representatives observed Nike sponsored track athletes training barefoot.[1]
Overview
The numbering system indicates the cushioning of the shoe and follows a scale ranging from 0 (barefoot) to 10 (normal running shoe). Free 3.0 is the least and Free 7.0 (discontinued) is the most cushioned model so far.[2]
Nike started the Free series with the Free 5.0 in 2005 and in 2006 released a new version of the shoe, the Nike Free 5.0 V2, that addressed some durability issues. Also, the heel and sidewalls of the shoe were redesigned to prevent tearing.
Since then, the Nike Free 5.0 V3 (2007), Free 5.0 V4 (2009), and Free 5.0 V5 (2013) have been released along with other models, such as the Free 3.0 V1–V5 and the Free 7.0 V1 and V2.
In 2016, Nike retired the numbering system in favor of the RN designation. In 2019, Nike brought back the numbering system in the new Nike Free RN 5.0 and the Free RN 3.0. In 2019 the naming was changed again. The Free series consists of only two models, the RN 5.0 and RN Flyknit 3.0.