Football star promotes foundation with Great One-style design made by Mache Customs
By Dan O'Leary
@DanOLeary25 NHL.com Staff Writer
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is following in the footsteps of hockey greatness.
To be more accurate, Kelce is following in Gretzky's skates, with his own custom cleats.
Kelce participated in the NFL's "My Cause, My Cleats" event, where players have custom designed footwear to promote a charitable cause they are involved with, with a little bit of hockey-inspired style.
The Super Bowl LIV champion and three-time NFL All-Pro selection chose his youth charity, 87 & Running, which works to empower disadvantaged youth and cultivate their talents. He blended that with the unmistakable boot of Gretzky's Nike Zoom Air skates, which the NHL's career points leader wore in the late 1990s.
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 30, 2021On Sunday, our players will be representing organizations that are of great importance to them through their custom designed cleats.
First up, @tkelce will rep his own foundation, @87Running, which focuses on cultivating and supporting disadvantaged youth! pic.twitter.com/Lh1LiflRPu
The special cleats, which debuted on "Sunday Night Football" as the Chiefs hosted the Denver Broncos, were created by footwear designer Dan Gamache of
Mache Customs
, a longtime collaborator of Kelce's and plenty of other athletes. The design specifically recreates the multiple oval look from Gretzky's skates -- which were placed around the back and about halfway down each side of the shoe.
Kelce is a well-documented Gretzky fan since childhood and explained as much in some recent
Instagram
stories. He also famously showed up to Game 3 of 2019 Stanley Cup final in support of the eventual champion St. Louis Blues wearing a throwback Gretzky jersey. Gretzky's stint with the Blues was short [18 games], but impactful [21 points].
