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Side and sole view of the handmade Koyo Bear Sharpman White Trim canvas sneakers, made in Japan in white canvas with white piping and white vulcanised outsole, showing the classic low-profile design of the world’s first purpose-built table tennis shoe.

SHARPMAN

THE SHOE OF CHAMPIONS

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Vintage English-language advertisement for Koyo Bear Sharpman table tennis shoes, announcing their selection for world championships and highlighting the blue-trim design of the world’s first purpose-built table tennis sneaker.
Ichiro Ogimura wearing the Koyo Bear Sharpman White canvas sneakers, the world’s first purpose-built table tennis shoe, designed by him.

The shoe of champions

Brought to the world by Japan’s table tennis champions of the 1950s and 1960s, the Koyo Bear Sharpman dominated the international table tennis stage for decades.

Designed by table tennis legend Ichiro Ogimura, the Sharpman offered players a never-before-seen level of movement, grip, and flexibility, enabling the lightning-fast footwork and reflexes that encapsulated Ogimura’s offensive playing style.

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George Braithwaite of the U.S. table tennis team competing in Koyo Bear Sharpman shoes during the Ping Pong Diplomacy era, when American and Chinese players helped open relations between the United States and China.
Cover of the Japanese “Table Tennis Report” magazine from 1976 showing Stellan Bengtsson wearing Koyo Bear Sharpman shoes during a professional table tennis match.

Sharpman

OGIMURA EDITION

Almost 60 years after its first introduction, the Koyo Bear Sharpman returns to the stage with a first small-production series.

Just like its predecessor, the re-edition of the Sharpman is fully handcrafted and vulcanized in Japan to the shoe’s original high standards and production methods, ready to start a new journey across the globe.

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Top view of the handmade Koyo Bear Sharpman Blue Trim canvas sneakers, made in Japan in white canvas with light blue piping, shown as a matching pair of the world’s first purpose-built table tennis shoe with the insole branding visible.