Matt Hamilton is known for his personality, and at the 2022 Winter Olympics, the American curler made sure his shoes weren’t missed.
How did Hamilton end up with the bold sneakers? Hamilton is a sneakerhead, so some of his friends bought him a pair from the collection of skateboarding champion Paul Rodriguez. What’s interesting is that curlers wear special shoes to help with the ice. Hamilton had the Nike’s converted to curling shoes by attaching a gripper on one sole and a slider on the other.
"I just thought they’re sweet," Hamilton said before the Americans opened their gold medal defense with a round-robin match against the Russians. "Here we are with some wild shoes."
The "What the Paul" shoes were designed to "incorporate eclectic tapestry that celebrates the rich stories behind every material, graphic and hue we’ve seen over the course of P-Rod’s run," according to Nike’s website.
If crazy colors and mismatched textures have you eyeing your next pair of sneakers, they’re listed at $150 on Nike’s site. Not so bad considering how many colors and textures are part of the shoe.
In the meantime, Hamilton is hoping the colorful shoes bring luck to the Americans, as they continue their quest for back-to-back golds.