To be honest, I'm not really a Winter Olympics kinda guy. But earlier this week, with the Games on and the group chats lighting up, I figured I'd dip in and see what all the fuss was about.
I was half-watching, half-doomscrolling and fully googling the rules. Luge? Still unclear. Skeleton? Terrifying. Curling? Deeply confusing but weirdly calming. Lots of sweeping, lots of intense staring, and very polite tension. Then I saw it: a bright white Swoosh. I leaned forward. Was… was that a Nike Air Force 1?
It was! On Olympic ice and on Team USA curler Korey Dropkin. I immediately did what any sane person would do and googled “curling shoes.” What popped up were a bunch of specialist brands that you've probably never heard of, in fairly standard shapes and in every single color as long as it was black. Very functional, very serious, very sensible—and yet here was a red, white, and blue AF1 gliding across Cortina d'Ampezzo like it had been doing this its entire life.
So I tracked down the guy responsible: Craig Nicko, founder of Craig's Curling Shoes, a Minnesota-based family operation that's quietly been turning grails into game-ready footwear since 2018.
Turns out, their partnership didn't start with Olympians. “Korey Dropkin was one of our earliest customers after we formed the business,” Nicko says. “Since then, we've converted several pairs for him, as well as other members of Team USA.” His clientele also included Matt Hamilton, whose Nike “What The Paul” Dunks caused a bit of commotion at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.
The Air Force 1, interestingly, wasn't even Dropkin's original go-to. “He had previously worn Nike SB models,” Nicko says. “In 2022, he moved to the AF1, largely driven by team uniform color coordination.” After that season he went back to SBs before reaching out last summer to refresh the AF1s. “He felt they were too good to retire.”
This isn't just about vibes, though. Curling shoes are wildly specific bits of kit. They're asymmetrical by design: one shoe grips the ice, the other has a near-frictionless Teflon slider so you can glide. The slider is usually a quarter-inch thick, split between the toe and the heel. The opposite shoe gets a soft rubber gripper attached with Velcro so it can be swapped out. There's also a reinforced toe coat on the gripper shoe because it drags during delivery.
To convert an AF1, Nicko removes the original tread, levels out the outsole, preps the surface, then shapes and installs sliders, grippers, and Velcro by hand. Each stage requires curing time, so while active labor might only be a few hours, a finished pair takes about a week or so from start to ship. Every step happens in his Minnesota workshop, which is now staffed by five family members.
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And yes, they're fully regulation. There are no specific rules on design from USA Curling or the IOC, but World Curling Federation rule R11(a) prohibits equipment that damages the ice. “Within the bounds of protecting the ice surface, there are no restrictions on slider speed or gripper traction,” Nicko says. Translation: Look as good as you want, just don't ruin the rink.
Which brings us to the bigger question: Why are curlers swapping traditional silhouettes for actual sneakers?
“Traditional curling footwear is limited in both fit and aesthetic,” Nicko explains. “Most manufacturers offer only a handful of models, typically in black or primary colors. By contrast, the global sneaker market offers thousands of silhouettes, fits, and colorways.” For athletes under broadcast lighting or just playing in their local club, shoes become a huge part of their ID.
So is curling having its sneakerhead moment? “It remains niche within the sport,” the shoemaker says, “but it is growing steadily.” In many US clubs, custom conversions now make up a noticeable chunk of what you see on the ice. Some players even own multiple pairs to match different uniforms. That's not behaviour you associate with standard issue curling shoes.
Performance-wise, the AF1 genuinely holds up. “The midsole is notably stable with minimal lateral flex,” Nicko says. “It offers structure, consistency and predictability on the ice.” There's no single perfect shoe for every curler, but for certain delivery styles, the AF1 is a serious contender. At elite level, performance still comes first. The fact that it looks sick is a bonus.
This isn't even the first time Olympic sport has flirted with trainer culture. During the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, British GQ editor Murray Clark wrote about how “fencing has some unbelievably sick sneakers. … They're clean, streamlined and, in their own way, slightly Y2K.” For an event that's about shiny medals and national pride, the Olympics is weirdly good for spotting unexpected trainer trends. And while Harry Styles is out there trying to make torpedo sneakers a thing, maybe we've been looking in the wrong place this whole time.
Craig's Curling Shoes has handled everything from fur-lined boots to Birkenstocks; Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Chanel pairs, too. And yes, honorary coach Snoop Dogg even stepped onto the ice last week in a custom pair, which feels like the exact energy shift curling didn't know it needed.
When I ask Nicko about the weirdest job he's taken on, he doesn't hesitate. “We've converted everything,” he says. “My favorites are always the pairs with real personality.” His least favorite? “Those gold Trump high-tops.”
A version of this story originally appeared on British GQ.