Adidas x Parley’s global impact initiative, Run for the Oceans, returns for its fifth year, uniting sporting communities across the planet

New Delhi– As we approach World Oceans Day on June 8, adidas and its longstanding partner Parley for the Oceans is once again encouraging the global sporting community to turn activity into action and Run for the Oceans in 2022.

For the first time, new activities have been introduced to the challenge, making this the most inclusive Run for the Oceans yet. People from all parts of the global sporting community are invited to hit the streets, the tennis court and the football field, and unite to help protect the oceans from plastic waste.

Launching between May 23 – June 8, the event returns for its fifth year, with the ambition of mobilising a generation to help end plastic waste. Research shows that the world is at a tipping point, with it predicted that oceans will contain more plastic than fish by 2050.

We need action from everyone, everywhere to create true change and this year Run for the Oceans will expand to welcome in a wider range of activities – when we all come together, we can help make a world of difference.

For every 10 minutes of running from select activities, such as running, tennis or football^*, recorded by participants via the adidas Runtastic app, Joyrun, Codoon, Yeudongquan or Strava, Parley will clean up the equivalent weight of one plastic bottle from beaches, remote islands, and coastlines before it reaches the ocean (up to a maximum of 250,000kg).

Katja Schreiber, SVP Sustainability at adidas said: “Time is against us in the race to help end plastic waste, so we’re pushing harder and with more focus than ever before. Just like how this is an industry-wide problem, it requires industry-wide solutions, because sustainability is a team sport. By uniting our sporting community for this challenge, we can inspire real action against plastic waste by giving people an experience where their actions and way of being active contributes towards cleaning up the ocean.

It’s important that our own brand commitments reflect the situation with which we are faced and that’s why we’ve committed to our goal of replacing virgin polyester with recycled polyester in our products by 2024 wherever possible.”

Since 2017, adidas and Parley’s Run for the Oceans has united over 8.2 million runners worldwide, running a combined total of more than 81.7 million km.

Since the beginning of the partnership in 2015, adidas has made more than 50 million pairs of shoes with Parley Ocean Plastic and close to 18 million pairs in 2021 alone – this includes plastic waste intercepted from beaches and coastal communities, preventing it from polluting the oceans.

For 2022, adidas x Parley have announced the launch of Adizero X Parley and Ultraboost 22 X Parley. With a carbon footprint of just 3.5kg per pair, the Adizero X Parley is the first time adidas and Parley have combined to launch a lower footprint concept, a milestone for the partnership delivered through innovation and with no compromise on shoe performance.

From raw material interception, processing, packaging, all the way to the end of product life, adidas calculates and communicates its carbon footprint, conforming to an internationally recognized standard: ISO 14067. The footprint results made available provide full transparency on the complete lifecycle of the product.

Whilst the adidas x Parley partnership shows that progress can be made on the path to help end plastic waste, there is still more to be done.

CyrillGutsch, CEO and founder of Parley said: “Seven years ago, adidas signed a contract to support Parley as a founding partner. With this decision, the three stripes showed the courage to face an epic threat: The Plastic Crisis. Millions of people have supported us since, with action and by buying products made with Parley Ocean Plastic, a material we invented to fund our work.These products became Symbols of Change, flags that carry an optimistic message. We can end the crisis by cleaning up our planet, by inventing new materials and most importantly, by changing our minds. Today, plastic is still threatening life. But billions of people now know how harmful it is. Run for the Oceans is the

moment where we turn awareness into action, where we grow our movement even bigger. Where everyone can take a stand. Run with your feet, run your mind! Help us to end this epic battle. Together we can win this impossible mission and end the destruction of our magical blue planet. Join Parley for the Oceans!”

Individually we can take action, together we can make an impact – adidas is unifying sporting communities across the globe to Run for the Oceans between May 23 – June 8 by signing up and tracking activity via the adidas Runtastic app, Joyrun, Codoon, Yeudongquan or Strava. For more information and to sign up, visit adidas.com/runfortheoceans.

Follow the conversation at @adidasrunning, @parley.TV, and @adidasRuntastic on Instagram and onFacebook and Twitter, using #RunForTheOceans #adidasParley #ImpossibleIsNothing #endplasticwaste