Sneak Peek
Dina: Athlete In Progress
Dina Asher-Smith is a phenomenal athlete. The South Londoner is the fastest British woman in history and has accolades—at European, World and Olympic levels—to prove it. Not that she’s resting on her laurels. She has her sights set on many more, Starting with Tokyo next year.Away from the track, she’s been walking Virgil Abloh’s catwalk and is now the face of the Nike x Off-White ‘Athlete in Progress’ campaign.
Steeped In History
This latest collaboration is an ode to the athlete in progress, tapping into Nike’s rich heritage in track and field. Featuring striking patterns and silhouettes built for speed, Virgil delivers style and substance designed to inspire progress both on and off the field. To Dina, this combination of fashion and performance represents “the future of sports culture,” she explains. “It reminds people and young girls in particular to judge their bodies for what they can do, rather than just how they look.”
The Virgil Effect
The very fact that Virgil Abloh has chosen to work with athletes is a big deal for Dina—something that she feels has the power to change both athletics and fashion in different ways. “It’s humbling and feels great for us in track and field and in sports that somebody as influential and as powerful as Virgil wants to use us as muses,” she begins. “And I think it’s something that I don’t think many people in our community have experienced before. It’s humbling because we forget that other people may be inspired or may be influenced by what we are doing. Just to see that it brings sports into fashion and the whole ‘Athlete in Progress’ collection becomes hot because of that is really nice.”
“In Progress”
The idea of ‘Athlete in Progress’ is close to Dina’s heart. “To me it symbolises evolution and continual growth,” she explains. “Obviously I am an athlete but also I see myself as ‘in progress’ so it’s a weird kind of oxymoron to me and that’s why it resonates with me: because I’m always trying to be better, I’m always trying to push boundaries, I’m always trying to improve, get faster and way more things. I think that symbolises the idea that we are always chasing this goal and whether it’s obtainable or not we are always trying to improve. Even though I’m an athlete, I’m still an ‘athlete in progress’.”
