Spanish brand JOMA takes to the road with a new range of models for runners.
Founded in 1965 by Portillo de Toledo with a vision to create an innovative sports brand, Joma has become an international player in the sports industry.
Establishing the brand in football and athletics, it began to blossom with Spain’s national football team wearing the brand and winning the gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Additionally, Fermin Cacho took the gold in the men’s 1500m with Joma spikes on his feet.
At the 2016 Rio Games, 18 national federations wore Joma, and in Paris 2024, 15% of athletes sported the brand.
The brand’s latest range of running shoes focuses on speed and performance with carbon plates and the brand’s FLY REACTIVE midsole foam being the focus of their technology.
R.5000 – £180.00
Designed as a lightweight, race-day-ready shoe, the R.5000 is aimed at runners who want speed without sacrificing comfort, a balance often difficult to achieve.
The shoe is sleek, low-profile, and obviously built for performance. The upper uses a lightweight engineered mesh that feels breathable and race day focussed. It hugs the foot securely without feeling restrictive, which is especially noticeable during faster efforts when foot movement can become an issue in less structured designs. The lockdown is impressive for a shoe in this category, and the tongue and lacing system do a good job of distributing pressure evenly across the instep.
One of the standout features of the R.5000 is its midsole construction. Joma has incorporated a responsive foam compound that leans more toward firmness than plushness. This is not a max-cushion, soft cruiser; it’s a shoe that encourages faster turnover and efficiency. The ride feels snappy, with a noticeable energy return that becomes more apparent as you increase pace.
While it may not have the ultra-soft bounce associated with some super-shoes, it compensates with a grounded, more stable feel that many runners will actually prefer, especially in longer races where control matters.
There is also a carbon plate integrated into the midsole, designed to enhance propulsion. While it doesn’t feel as aggressively rigid as some carbon-plated competitors, it offers a subtle forward roll that helps guide your stride. This makes the shoe versatile, fast enough for race day, but not so extreme that it becomes uncomfortable for tempo runs or longer training sessions.
For runners who find full carbon shoes too harsh or unstable, the R.5000 offers a more approachable alternative.
The outsole is another area where the shoe performs reliably. Joma has used a durable rubber compound that provides good traction across a variety of road conditions. Whether running on dry pavement or slightly damp surfaces, traction remains consistent.
Where the shoe truly shines is in its versatility. While clearly designed with racing in mind, particularly distances like 5km to half marathon, it adapts well to a range of faster training sessions. Intervals, tempo runs, and even steady long runs at pace feel natural in this shoe. It occupies a middle ground between a pure racing flat and a super-shoe.
Given its price and versatility, the shoe is very competitive and offers great value in the category.
R1000 – £160.00
Where the R.5000 positions itself as a more race-focused shoe, the R.1000 takes a slightly different approach, blending speed-oriented technology with a more forgiving, versatile ride. The result is a shoe that sits in that increasingly popular super-trainer category: capable of racing, but designed to handle a much broader range of running demands.
The upper here feels a touch more accommodating and less aggressively race-tuned. The mesh is flexible and breathable, with a softer structure that prioritises comfort over race day lockdown. This makes it more forgiving over longer distances and during everyday training.
Under the foot is where the real character of the R.1000 emerges. The midsole uses Joma’s Fly Reactive foam combined with a carbon plate, but in a less aggressive manner. The shoe provides a smoother, more natural transition through the gait cycle.
The cushioning itself is more generous than in the R.5000. There’s a clear emphasis on cushioning and comfort, particularly in the heel, which allows the shoe to handle longer efforts with ease. It is a nicely balanced ride, responsive enough for faster paces, yet protective enough for sustained mileage.
On the road, the shoe feels dynamic without being demanding. It encourages pace when you push it, but remains comfortable when you ease off. It’s equally comfortable ticking off steady miles, handling tempo efforts, or lining up for a race, particularly in the 10K to half-marathon range, though it could stretch to the marathon for many runners, particularly those that don’t want the out and out race feel of more aggressive shoes.
Find out more about JOMA here