Mumbai: Sportswear major adidas has announced Olympic medallist Mirabai Chanu as the face of its ‘Stay In Play’ campaign as it unveiled its latest product innovation designed to keep more menstruators in sport in a bid to tackle one of the greatest taboos faced by women in sports.   

The brand’s new TechFit Period-Proof tights feature an absorbent layer to help protect against leaks when worn with a tampon or pad, giving women athletes the confidence to stay in play throughout their menstrual cycle, said adidas.

The sports brand found that teenage girls are dropping out of sport at an alarming rate, with one of the key reasons being fear of period leakage. Using these insights, adidas set out to create a product that helps athletes stay in sport throughout their cycle by giving them an added layer of protection.

Talking about the new campaign launch, adidas - India senior director, Sunil Gupta said, “It is our commitment to revolutionise our product offering and services to better support the needs of our diverse women community. Our ambition with this product is to keep women in sport by giving them the confidence to train during their period."

Excited about the launch campaign, Mirabai said, "I am thrilled to see the products which will help girls break barriers and be in action. The desire to stay in play no matter what the situation has always been my priority. Seeing these product innovations from adidas, I feel confident that we will help girls all over the world to stay in sport.”

After over two years of development and rigorous testing carried out at each stage of the journey, the TechFit Period-Proof tights were developed using new adidas Flow Shield technology, with the aim to give athletes added confidence whilst training through their period. A wicking layer, absorbing layer and leakproof layer work together to provide protection, whilst a bonding frame holds each layer together and keeps the tights in place, the brand said in a statement.

The collection is made available in India from 15 August on adidas website and select brand stores.