Mizuno is a Japanese sportswear brand that started by crafting baseballs and baseball garb in the early 1900s. From there, the scientifically-focussed brand continued to develop across multiple sports. It was 1983 when running shoes finally made it into the mix. Then, a little over a decade later, in 1997, the first Mizuno Wave shoe model hit the market … and it was less than a success (at least in the American market). But that didn’t stop Mizuno from trying again. And it’s a good thing they did.

In 1999, after a couple of years of meticulous R and D, the Wave Rider 2 hit the ground running. In the second iteration, Mizuno reconstructed the entire Wave Plate and extracted superfluous materials. The result? A lighter-weight running shoe that would begin a long line of industry-leading footwear with a strong cult following.

Over the next decade, the shoe slowly evolved, albeit carefully. By 2003, the Wave Rider received awards from running magazine editors and was already a lighter, more responsive, breathable and stable shoe than its predecessors. And, it’s still getting better.

Since then, the shoe has regularly lost weight, changed it's outward appearance and transitioned to more technologically-advanced materials. And this year’s Mizuno Wave Rider 22 is no different. Here’s our review of the brand-new 2018 update of Mizuno’s iconic shoe: