New “super spikes” which use lightweight, compliant, and resilient foam, and often a carbon fiber plate, are thought to provide advantages over traditional track spikes.

In theory, these new technologies will result in mechanical advantages, such as improved energy return or increased ankle push off moments; however, these advantages are likely subject and event specific.

Testing track spikes comes with a unique set of challenges, including quantifying the metabolic energy demands of middle-distance running and limiting fatigue during testing, and therefore it is unlikely we will be able to put an exact number on the benefits from super spikes.