Jannik Sinner altered his travel plans after the Australian Open to visit Milan for a unique design collaboration with Nike. Instead of returning to his hometown of Sexten, the tennis champion worked with the brand to introduce a custom performance ensemble. This project served to launch a new collection of All Conditions Gear (ACG) and established a presence for Nike during a prominent global winter sports event.
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The collaboration resulted in a complete layered system consisting of a bespoke jacket, an insulated vest, tailored trousers, and technical footwear. This kit moves away from the typical aesthetics of a competition uniform to reflect the life of Sinner outside of tennis. Alongside Martin Lotti, the Chief Design Officer at Nike, Sinner presented the outfit, which features a boxy cocoon shape and sculptural deep pleats designed for cold environments.
For Sinner, the project highlighted a level of brand investment that prioritizes the personal importance of the athlete. He noted that the partnership feels like a family due to the high level of close cooperation. The design team focused on serving the needs of the athlete through a balance of performance technology and individual expression. This specific system draws direct inspiration from the history Sinner shares with the mountains.
The tailored components of the look include several distinct personal touches. A pure silver carabiner hangs from a chain on the pants, with a shape that follows the elevation lines of an Alpine map. This detail honors the years Sinner spent as a competitive skier. Raffaella Barbey, the Senior Design Director at Nike, managed the production of the pieces to the exact requirements of the athlete.
Direct athlete feedback influenced the final appearance of the clothing. Designers originally included orange piping on the jacket but replaced it with a more muted color palette to match the personal preferences of Sinner. The core of the outfit features an ACG vest utilizing adaptive A.I.R. technology. This same innovation appears in the equipment used by Team USA. Each piece of outerwear and footwear provides protection against winter elements while maintaining a refined visual style.
Lotti described the methodology behind the project as an extension of the standard athlete-first approach. Designers began by listening to the preferences and functional needs of the player. Creating a one-of-one garment allowed the team to experiment with advanced materials and construction methods that are difficult to use in mass production. Working on a single unit also enabled the team to meet a significantly faster production timeline.
This initiative represents the debut of Nike Atelier, a platform for building custom products for signature athletes during major cultural moments. Atelier focuses on the identity and environment of the individual. Sinner, who was a national giant slalom champion in Italy before turning to tennis, provided the ideal background for an ACG-focused project. His history in the Dolomites shaped the direction of this bespoke expression.
Sinner observed that this process required more active participation than his previous brand collaborations. He participated in frequent discussions regarding functional improvements and design changes. He expressed that style involves an understanding of one’s own personality in the current moment.
