adidas Adizero Evo SL
£140
UK RRP
Midsole to scale · mm · red dashes mark the 40mm road limit
- Weight
- 224 g
- men's US 9
- Stack
- 38.5 / 32 mm
- heel / forefoot · drawn above, against the 40mm line
- Drop
- 6.5 mm
- Plate
- none
- Foam
- Lightstrike Pro
- Stability
- balanced
- Competitive life
- ~550 km
- before the foam stops giving it back
- Built for
- 5K · 10K · Half · Marathon
Verdict
Super shoe foam without the plate or the price. Fast enough to race, cheap enough to train in every day, and the reason a lot of people stopped buying tempo trainers.
■ Caution
No plate, so it does not return what a true racer does. The upper is the weak point — it wears out well before the midsole.
Straight answers
- Is the adidas Adizero Evo SL legal for road racing?
- Yes. The adidas Adizero Evo SL measures 38.5mm at its highest point, 1.5mm inside the World Athletics 40mm road limit. The limit only binds Applicable Competitions; most club and local races apply no shoe rule at all.
- How much does the adidas Adizero Evo SL weigh?
- 224g in a men's US 9 (UK 8), by the manufacturer's stated figure. Weight moves roughly 3.5% per UK size step, so a UK 11 weighs materially more than the spec sheet says.
- What is the stack height and drop of the adidas Adizero Evo SL?
- 38.5mm at the heel and 32mm at the forefoot — a 6.5mm drop. There is no plate; the midsole is Lightstrike Pro.
- How long does the adidas Adizero Evo SL last?
- We estimate roughly 550km of competitive life — the point at which the foam has degraded enough that you are no longer getting the benefit you paid £140 for, not the point at which the shoe falls apart. Spread over race cycles, that is what the cost-per-race figure on this page is built from.
- Is the adidas Adizero Evo SL good for a marathon?
- Yes — the marathon is one of the distances it is built for (5k, 10k, half marathon and marathon). Super shoe foam without the plate or the price. Fast enough to race, cheap enough to train in every day, and the reason a lot of people stopped buying tempo trainers.
Legality by event
Adizero Evo SL at 38.5mm · every panel drawn to one scale
Road racing
40mm · 1.5 clear
Track events
20mm · 18.5 over
Field events
20mm · 18.5 over
Cross country (spiked shoes)
20mm · 18.5 over
Cross country (non-spiked)
40mm · 1.5 clear
Race walking
40mm · 1.5 clear
Mountain and trail
no limit
Drawn from the manufacturer’s stated stack height, which is not the measurement World Athletics takes — the rule is measured on a men’s US 8.5 sample, and larger sizes may legally exceed it. An indication, not a ruling. Limits bind Applicable Competitions; most club and local races apply no shoe rule at all. What that means in practice.
Reading — what would the Adizero Evo SL save you?
Time bought back
−1:09 – 2:25
Off 3:45:00, that lands you at 3:42:35 on the optimistic end.
- Per race
- £16
- ~8.7 races in the foam
- Per second
- £0.15
- whole-life basis
- Sticker
- £140
- UK recommended retail
Economy gain 1.8–2.9% v. a traditional flat, adjusted for pace and your current shoes. Full method.
Manufacturer-stated specs unless marked estimated · last reviewed 2026-09-04 · prices are UK RRP; check the retailer for the live figure.