Have you ever been kicked out of a venue before because you didn’t have the right non-marking badminton shoes?
If you have been a regular indoor sports player, you must be absolutely familiar with the concept of these shoes. If not, you should know what it is that the venue caretakers seem so fussy about!
Non-marking shoes are basically those with soles that don’t cause scuff marks on the surface of the indoor courts. These are soft rubber sole shoes designed to ensure that they don’t leave sole impressions (leave soulful impressions on your opponent instead!) on synthetic/wooden court surfaces. These are also referred to as gum sole shoes for badminton. The soft rubber used as the sole is made of specific gum rubber, classifying the shoes as gum sole shoes.
Such non-marking badminton shoes are useful not only for court owners but can also be extremely useful for you. Choosing the right shoes can help you improve your game on the go.
Multiple shoes serve different purposes, and though all of these shoes fall in a larger category called “Non-marking badminton shoes, each has a special feature that can help you improve your game significantly.
So what types of shoes can you spot on the shelves in the market? Let’s find out!
Non-Marking badminton shoes have gum rubber soles that help them grip the surface well, but they produce friction, sometimes reducing your running speed. Here are a few shoes that can help you run faster due to their lightweight or special cushioning.
LiNing has a range of ultra-speed shoes with cushioned midsole. These cushioned midsoles help you transition smoothly whenever your game has extreme movements. It also has Li Ning’s patented technology called Ultra stable sole, which means you cannot only run fast but also apply brakes quickly and maintain balance.
Yonex shoes are built with the “power cushion technology”. It is a patented technology where they insert a powerful graphite sheet in the midsole of the shoes. It makes bouncing so easy and smooth that your legs/joints will not feel even the slightest shock.
Watch this video to understand their technology
These are the lightest shoes ever made by Victor. They use their patented Nitro-Lite technology to make midsoles. This means these shoes’ midsoles are made of nitrogen, rapidly inflating when pressure is applied. Victor also prides on making midsoles evenly distributed across the shoe’s shape.
These shoes are perfect for protection and stability. One of the first body parts that get injured when you slip is your toes and toenails. To protect them, these shoes have additional cushioning near the toe region. They are also very wide in the toe region, making them the right choice who feel claustrophobic with Yonex shoes. The outsole of the shoe is made of a single rubber (unlike other Yonex shoes), making them better at protecting the feet against shocks.
The outside of these shoes are made of high-strength thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU). TPU is responsible for great resistance and thus helps you stay stable during transitions. You can change directions, and these shoes will support your movement across any direction.
As highlighted on their own website, these non-marking badminton shoes are extremely stable and robust. One of the most important features they offer is a flexible fit. Their entire outsole is prepared from a single rubber, and they have Li Ning’s patented Boom foam technology. The newest midsole flick technology uses supercritical physical foaming technology to provide more energy and reduce compression deformation of the sole. This technology uses lighter Pebax foam, which has better resilience than traditional TPU foam.
Yonex Comfort Z3 are non-marking badminton shoes made of power cushion + technology patented by Yonex, which improves shock absorption by 28%. The midsole also has a new section called feather light bounce foam in the midsection, making these shoes extremely comfortable for movement, twists-turns, jumps and more.
The super-responsive Li-Ning Ranger V non-marking badminton shoe is designed to help you reach the pinnacle. It has a step-in entry and an internal lacing mechanism for added versatility and convenience. This top-of-the-class shoe is engineered with LN Cloud technology that slows down the impact and provides complete cushioning and high rebound. The shoe also ensures complete foot protection, reduces energy loss, and achieves that by incorporating Light Foam technology.
This Non-marking badminton shoes with HYPEREVA technology are considered superior because of their lightweightness, elasticity, and stability compared to the shoes that do not have HYPEREVA technology. Victor P8500 II D has a wider use of HYPEREVA making it a super comfortable shoe for all kinds of badminton players. The ankle area of the shoes keeps the structural design of the previous generation but offers an enhancement to the fitting of the shoes and works as a boost to the support around the ankle.
Tennis is a sport predominantly played on Grass, Clay, Indoor and carpets. This very reason makes it important to have the right pair of shoes for each occasion! Indoor Tennis or its newer version like pickleball or paddle tennis would require you to have good quality shoes while stepping onto the court. Tennis shoes are similar to badminton shoes, providing enough padding and agility to make quick direction changes.
While playing Basketball, the motions of the player can be different to the movements most other players makes on the court. Dunking, rebounding or even blocking and defence would mean a lot of high-intensity jumps and heavy landing on the court. When the landing pressure on the feet is higher, it is important to have shoes that give you good protection. These shoes are made for quick jumps and to reduce the chances of unwanted movements. This is to protect your ankle from twisting while completing a jump.
Volleyball also involves more jumping than tennis or badminton. Indoor volleyball shoes are made with padding to support you while landing after a smash or a denying block! Protection on the sides makes it better to prevent twisting or bending of ankles.
If you are looking to buy non-slip/non-marking/gum sole shoes and you have no idea how to make your pick, we have suggested a few cheap yet best non-marking badminton shoes you can opt from in other articles.
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