Barack Obama’s Custom Nikes are about to be sold by Sotheby’s

WORDS BY
Alina Amin

DATE
10.02.2021

CATEGORIES
News     

A rich history

At the end of last year, Sotheby’s started the biggest hiphop auction ever. Now, they’re continuing their dive into hiphop culture by selling Obama’s very own custom Nikes. The former president of the United States is well known to be a basketball enthusiast.

Fittingly, Nike made Obama custom Hyperdunk basketball shoes in 2009. The former POTUS was serving his first term back then. He took the Sneakers into his possession, where they remain to this day. To seal the exclusive design, Nike made a confirmation pair. The pair was never worn and is now selling for 25.000 Dollars.

It’s a celebration!

In celebration of the 44th President of America, the sneakers are launching on Friday 12th at 4:44 pm. The design was originally released for Team USA at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. The shoe features the number 44 on its medial toe box and offers a shoe tongue with an embroidered presidential seal.

Nike’s and Obama go way back. As told by Sotheby’s, their relationship started at Hawaii’s Punahou School. He was on the basketball team there and actually won the state championship in 1979 – of course – while wearing his Nike Blazers.

During his political career, the American sports brand collaborated with Obama in various ways. They welcomed him into their Headquarters in 2015 to make his pitch on trade and recently donated 5 million Dollars to his foundation.

 

The 44th

Sotheby’s goes hiphop

The iconic auction house Sotheby’s launched its first-ever hiphop auction on September 16th of last year. They had about 120 items in their inventory, with real historic gems like Biggies K.O.N.Y Crown or Tupacs love letters. In the span of a couple of weeks, Sotheby’s auction created an international buzz:

“The auction received remarkable interest with more than 400 registered bidders, more than 25% of whom were new to Sotheby’s, from 19 countries around the world, illustrating the widespread global reach of Hiphop as one of the world’s most impactful and beloved cultural movements.” (Sotheby’s Press Release)

With artifacts like the Wall of Boom or Drakes Air Jordan 4s, they marked a milestone in the rich history of the culture.