Our teams have developed this range of VERTIKA shoes: 4 pairs designed for climbers who want to progress to grade 6.
After a study of 10,000 sportsmen and women in 15 countries, including 3,000 in Europe, our research and development teams were able to observe a real difference between men's and women's feet. For an athlete with the same foot length, a woman's foot will be narrower in the metatarsals as well as in the heel. Also, the foot arch on a woman's foot is on average more pronounced than on a man's foot.
Based on all these findings, we realised the importance of differentiating between women's and men's feet. That's why we decided to create two versions of the same model: a fitted version, adapted to the morphology of women's feet and a wider version, adapted to the morphology of men's feet.
With the help of advanced climbers, our designers have perfected this technical, flexible and forgiving shoe for technical progress at a high level.
This shoe is technical because it has good grip and precision while remaining comfortable.
GRIP
Thanks to VIBRAM's XS Grip sole (soft, grippy rubber), the shoe has great grip, which is essential for climbers.
It has been reinforced a midsole to provide greater precision and power, particularly on small holds.
The rand across the shoe lets you perform toe hooks.
The heel has a soft rubber that adapts well to holds and grips when the heel is put down.
PRECISION
Thanks to its slight asymmetry, the shoe adapts to the foot around the big toe, where climbers naturally plant their foot.
The shoe naturally has a slightly arched shape to provide more strength in the toes.
The slingshot is moderate and pushes the foot forward with every movement to promote precision and power.
COMFORT
The choice of materials makes the shoe comfortable, as the 3D mesh on the tongue provides comfort and breathability.
This shoe does not stretch very much because it's made of synthetic microfibre with a lining, a material that is very stable over time.
With the help of advanced climbers, our designers have perfected this technical, flexible and forgiving shoe for technical progress at a high level.
This shoe is technical because it has good grip and precision while remaining comfortable.
GRIP
Thanks to the XS Grip sole from VIBRAM, the shoe has excellent grip which is essential for intermediate climbers.
The rand across the shoe lets you perform toe hooks.
The heel has a grippy rubber for heel hooks.
Our design teams have chosen to make a split-sole shoe that favours foot mobility and grip on surfaces. The flexibility of the shoe has also been worked on so that it can be pressed into holds for better traction.
PRECISION
Thanks to its slight asymmetry, the shoe adapts to the foot around the big toe, where climbers naturally plant their foot.
The shoe naturally has a slightly arched shape to provide more strength in the toes.
The slingshot is moderate and pushes the foot forward with every movement to promote precision and power.
It's a soft shoe that favours sensation and develops power. The flexibility is in the rubber. It's not excessively flexible either, as this would result in a loss of climbing quality and increased fatigue for the climber.
COMFORT
The choice of materials makes the shoe comfortable, as the 3D mesh on the tongue provides comfort and breathability.
Our design team favoured the ballerina shape in order to reduce the number of seams while keeping a hook and loop fastener to ensure good foot support.
This shoe does not stretch very much because it's made of synthetic microfibre with a lining, a material that is very stable over time.
Is your sole worn out? Don't throw your shoes away. It would be a shame, both ecologically and economically.
Contact one of our Decathlon shops to find out where to resole your shoe.
Once the sole has been changed, you can climb again with the liner already shaped to your foot.
Warning: as soon as you see the synthetic leather through the rubber, you have to stop and resole. If you puncture the synthetic leather, it will no longer be possible to resole.
To help you know when to resole without risking damage to the shoe, our engineers have developed a wear indicator in the rand of the VERTIKA soft shoe.
The wear indicator appears when 2/3 of the rand has been worn away, which will give you some time to make an appointment to have your shoe resoled.
It should be noted that once resoled, your shoe will no longer have this wear indicator as it was in the original shoe cover.