Saucony NYC Endorphin Azura Runs a Race New Balance Officially Sponsors

Saucony announced its fall marathon collection on August 15, four Endorphin Azura colorways named for Sydney, Berlin, Chicago and New York, all at $150. The New York pair is the one worth talking about, because on September 2 New Balance announced that it is the official athletic footwear and apparel sponsor of the New York Road Runners and unveiled its own collection for the same race. Two brands, one Sunday in November, one of them holding the contract.

The Endorphin Azura is the newest shoe in Saucony’s Endorphin family and the one that answers a specific complaint about the rest of it. Saucony introduced it January 20 and put it on sale February 1 at $150. The Endorphin line has been built around plates since the Pro arrived, and a plate makes a shoe fast at race pace and awkward everywhere else. The Azura takes the PWRRUN PB midsole, the beaded Peba foam Saucony first used on the Endorphin Pro, and the SPEEDROLL rocker geometry, and leaves the plate out. Brian Moore, Saucony’s chief product officer, said at launch that the aim was to make every pace feel efficient, from a tempo run to an easy cruise, rather than optimizing for one. That puts the Azura in the plateless super trainer category alongside the shoes most runners actually log miles in, and it explains why Saucony picked it as the canvas for a marathon collection instead of using the Endorphin Pro. A marathon weekend sells far more shoes to people running four hours than to people running two.

The New York pair is listed as White and Gold on Saucony’s size selector, while the product copy on the same page describes a white and blue edition inspired by the five boroughs. Saucony has not resolved that contradiction on its own site, so the colorway name is worth treating as unsettled until the shoes are in hand. The naming is careful in another way. Saucony’s release credits the iconic race cities of Sydney, Berlin, Chicago and New York and never names a single race, because it does not hold rights to any of them. These are city tributes that happen to arrive on marathon weekends. The performance package is untouched from the standard Azura, the same PWRRUN PB midsole, the same SPEEDROLL geometry, the same absence of a plate. Sizing runs 7 to 12.5 plus 13, 14 and 15 in men’s and 5 to 12 in women’s, which is the full Azura range rather than a limited grid, and the men’s New York pair carries style code S101329-1046.

Running the unofficial shoe at a major marathon is an old play and it usually works, because the people buying a city colorway are spectators, expo shoppers and runners who like the city, not the elite field. New Balance is spending real money on the official position. Its release puts footwear in the New York collection between $155 and $290 and apparel between $45 and $190, and it ties the launch to the 50th anniversary of the five-borough course across three separate drops between September 10 and race weekend. Saucony’s answer is one shoe at $150 with no expo exclusive and no phased rollout. That is a cheaper way to be present, and for a brand whose marathon credibility runs through the Endorphin and Guide lines rather than through sponsorship, it may be the better trade.

$150 is the standard Azura price, which means Saucony charged nothing extra for the city treatment. That is worth noting, because commemorative makeups usually carry a premium. On is charging $200 for its Hall of Fame edition of THE ROGER Centre Court against $170 for a Wildcard, and New Balance’s New York footwear starts at $155. Holding the line at $150 puts the New York Azura at the bottom of the price range for marathon footwear tied to this race while it sits on the same foam and geometry as the rest of the family. Saucony calls the four colorways limited edition, so the pricing discipline may not survive to the secondary market.

The four fall marathon Endorphin Azura colorways released August 15 at $150. The men’s New York pair is style code S101329-1046, listed in stock at Saucony.com in men’s 7 to 12.5, 13, 14 and 15, with women’s running 5 to 12. Sydney, Berlin and Chicago sit on the same page under the type selector. Saucony is selling the collection directly and through Saucony retailers. The TCS New York City Marathon runs November 1.

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The Sneakers Team

The Sneakers Team is the editorial desk behind becausesneakers, founded and edited by Nick Engvall. Nick has spent more than two decades in the sneaker industry. He built the original Eastbay Blog, led the first dedicated sneaker team at Complex, ran the first UGC and seeding programs at Finish Line, was employee number nine at StockX, and served as Senior Director at Stadium Goods. He hosts the Sneaker History podcast, and his first book, Small Luxuries: Sneakers, arrives in October 2026 from Motorbooks. Release details on this site are checked against the brand's own product information before publication, and anything we cannot confirm is labelled rather than stated.

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