Sneaker News For nearly two decades, the Nike and the OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital have worked closely together for its annual Doernbecher Freestyle event, a charity-driven project that teams designers at the brand with hand-selected young patients who are undergoing recovery at the institution. Through this collaboration has come an annual series of footwear designs, appealing to both the philanthropic community and sneaker fans and resulting in $29 million raised for charity. Each and every design is honorable in its own right, but there’s no denying that the Air Jordan has been the prize for sneakerheads. In lieu of the traditional experience due to the pandemic, Nike and OHSU have chosen to deliver a fitting tribute to this lasting legacy with the Air Jordan 1 “What The Doernbecher”.
Truthfully, only the Air Jordan 1 is a capable platform to mix and match this amount of creativity. Utilizing the famed “What The” concept, which features a haphazard placement of distinct details on each panel, the “What The Doernbecher” Jordan 1s turns back the clock to 2007 – the year first Air Jordan Doernbecher shoe released – and ensures that every chapter is included (and the photos below break down the entire arrangement).
Only seventeen pairs of this breathtaking homage have been created. One pair, with a custom lasered box, was auctioned off as part of the annual Doernbecher Freestyle at the OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital charity event. The remaining sixteen pairs will be auctioned off on eBay beginning on February 26th, 2021 at 12pm ET.
Updated March 7th, 2021: The auctions have officially ended. In total, $565,069.88 was raised for charity!
Updated March 2nd, 2021: The auctions are live now on eBay here. Auctions end on March 7th at 12pm PST. Each pair will come with exclusive packaging including a laser-etched wooden box and a special pull-over hoodie. All proceeds from the auction will benefit the OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital.
Updated February 26th, 2021: According to a Nike spokesperson, the original auction for the Air Jordan 1 “What The Doernbecher” fetched over $2 million, but bids were fake bids. Nike and OHSU will re-launch the auctions at a later date TBD.
