The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is an accessible carbon-plated racer built for runners who want one shoe that can handle fast workouts and race day without an overly aggressive ride. Previously known as the KD900X.2, it's the same shoe underfoot, sandwiching a flexible carbon plate between a dual-layer supercritical A-TPU midsole to deliver a light, energetic ride with excellent impact protection. Whether you're buying your first plated shoe, looking for a budget racer with premium features, or simply want one ridiculously fun shoe for faster mileage, the Kipstorm Challenger delivers a price-to-performance ratio that's hard to ignore.
Our Verdict
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is a great pick for long-distance racing. Its dual-layer A-TPU midsole offers excellent protection overall and holds up very well as the miles build. Though it's not the lightest marathon racer out there, it's still lightweight overall, delivering a propulsive ride that thrives over the marathon distance.
Cushioning remains very protective deep into longer efforts.
Impressive propulsion keeps legs ticking over.
A-TPU midsole gives back what you put in amazingly well.
On the higher-end of weight class for a marathon shoe.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is an impressive option for shorter races. Though the rocker is on the compliant side, its lightweight build, incredibly firm forefoot, and early rocker make for a snappy, propulsive ride that is hungry to hunt down PBs.
Impressive propulsion keeps legs ticking over.
Fantastically firm forefoot provides snappy toe-off.
Early rocker assists rapid turnover.
Rocker is more compliant than others in its class.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is a very good option for long runs. The shoe's stability is good; the rocker is smooth and propulsive, and the dual-density midsole provides very good protection over extended efforts, keeping legs fresh and feet rolling forward.
Cushioning remains very protective deep into longer efforts.
Impressive propulsion keeps legs ticking over.
Very good stability keeps the ride planted.
Rocker is more compliant than others in its class.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is an adequate choice for daily training, providing a very planted platform that's easy to trust. Its exceptionally firm heel creates a stable base, and its energetic midsole and forefoot rocker do a very good job of turning effort into propulsion. However, the carbon plate makes this a shoe that won't work for runners looking for a more laid-back ride.
Very good stability keeps the ride planted.
Deep cushioning offers excellent impact protection.
Early rocker makes for an engaging ride.
Plate too aggressive for a laidback ride.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger provides amazing energy return. The dual-layer A-TPU midsole is springy without being overly bouncy, and generously rewards the effort you put into the platform.
A-TPU midsole is lively underfoot.
Shoe rewards effort put in excellently.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is impressively responsive underfoot. The early rocker, energetic midsole, and flexible carbon plate make for a ride that is smooth yet snappy, keeping the legs ticking over.
Impressive propulsion keeps legs ticking over.
Forefoot returns energy excellently when bent.
Rocker is more compliant than others in its class.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger offers excellent overall cushioning. Its dual-layer A-TPU midsole stays deeply protective over extended efforts and across a wide range of force levels. Though it compresses more noticeably under higher loads, heavier runners still get very good overall impact protection.
Excellent impact protection overall.
Deeply cushioned across the full midsole.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger offers good overall stability. Though the outsole arch is quite narrow, the exceptionally firm heel and forefoot, combined with the good heel width-to-stack ratio, make for a planted ride that's easy to trust.
Fantastically firm heel provides a stable base.
Good outsole width makes the platform secure.
Exceptionally firm forefoot creates a trust-worthy toe-off.
Narrow arch outsole width.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger fits true to size. The length is spot on, while the forefoot width, height, and arch fit are accommodating enough to go with your usual size.
Length is spot on.
Accommodating forefoot height and width.
Performance Usages
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger in men's US size 9, as indicated on the label of our pair. The shoe pictured here is in the Snow White/Smoked Black colorway. This model is available in several other colors, depending on your region. Wide versions are not available for this shoe. The design section refers specifically to the model we tested, but we expect other sizes and gender variants to perform similarly.
Popular Running Shoe Comparisons
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is a carbon-plated racer that refuses to stay boxed into race day. Indeed, it's equally adept at tackling workouts, threshold sessions, long runs, and even some daily training if you don't mind a plate underfoot. It sits somewhere between the unplated adidas Adizero Evo SL and the carbon-plated PUMA Deviate NITRO Elite 4, combining the versatility of the adidas with much of the racing ability of the PUMA. Compared to the adidas, the Kiprun is a better choice for faster efforts thanks to its lighter build and more efficient, propulsive ride. The PUMA is the nimblest of the three and the best for shorter races, but the Kiprun more than holds its own in marathon efforts.
Within Kiprun's lineup, the Kipstorm Challenger sits in the brand's dedicated racing category alongside the Kiprun Kipstorm Elite. Below those, the Kiprun Kipstorm Tempo covers faster training without a plate, while the Kiprun Kipride is the classic daily trainer, and the Kiprun Kipride Max is the max-cushion cruiser.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best running shoes, as well as the best long-distance running shoes and the best shoes for running a marathon.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger and PUMA Deviate NITRO Elite 4 are both accessible carbon-plated racers, with a few key distinctions. The Kiprun is the more accessible shoe overall, with a more stable platform yet enough racing ability to handle workouts, longer efforts, and race day without feeling too aggressive. The PUMA is the more nimble, slightly more cushioned shoe, that's more responsive and a more capable racer. The Kiprun is the pick if you want a more stable race-day option, while the PUMA is the pick if 5K and 10K performance matters most.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Tempo and Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger are both performance shoes from Decathlon's running line, but they're built for different jobs. The Tempo is the unplated uptempo trainer, with a taller heel stack, deeper cushioning, and a rockered geometry that helps it roll through workouts, long runs, and faster daily mileage. The Challenger is the more aggressive shoe overall, coming in much lighter, with a carbon plate and much more energy returned through the heel and forefoot, which gives it a more propulsive ride for race day and faster efforts.
The adidas Adizero Evo SL and Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger are both versatile performance shoes, but they suit different use cases. The adidas is the non-plated option, with enough range for daily mileage and faster training, and it flourishes during tempo workouts. The Kiprun is the more aggressive shoe overall, coming in much lighter, featuring a carbon plate and a more energetic, propulsive ride. You'll likely prefer the adidas if you want a lively shoe that sits closer to a daily trainer, whereas the Kiprun is the better pick if you want an accessible plated performance shoe that can handle everything from workouts to racing.
We buy and test running shoes with a very data-oriented approach. While we're just getting started, our methodology already has dozens of tests to help you make the right purchasing decision for your needs. Not only do we use high-end equipment to gather objective data, but we also order multiple sizes of the same shoes so team members can log in miles. This real-world testing is conducted at various paces and conditions, across different types of workouts, to cover all the bases. This allows us to verify our results and ensure they align with what you might feel with a specific pair.
Test Results
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger is light overall, making it well-suited to faster training and race-day efforts. It's still on the higher end for a carbon-plated marathon shoe, though, with shoes like the PUMA Deviate NITRO Elite 4 being much lighter.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger has a very good heel rocker, with a high heel spring and a steep rocker angle that helps the shoe roll forward from heel strike.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger's toe spring is high, and the rocker starts early, helping the shoe roll smoothly through push-off.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger returns an excellent amount of energy in the heel thanks to its A-TPU midsole, which helps it rebound efficiently after landing. It's much more energetic than the adidas Adizero Evo SL, but the ride still isn't super bouncy. Instead, it helps heel strikers transition smoothly through the midfoot without making the shoe feel overly soft or unstable.
This shoe's excellent forefoot energy return means the midsole rebounds efficiently as you push off. It's more energetic than the adidas Adizero Evo SL, though much like the heel, the ride isn't overly bouncy. Instead, the forefoot rebound works with the carbon plate to provide a propulsive ride without making the shoe overly aggressive.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger has excellent heel cushioning overall, with outstanding impact absorption at lower forces. Heel strikers will be well served by the midsole, and the cushioning remains very good under higher forces as well.
This shoe has amazing overall forefoot cushioning, with superb impact absorption at lower forces, providing plenty of protection during lighter landings. Though the protection ebbs under higher forces, it still delivers good protection under those force levels.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger has a very firm heel, especially under moderate and higher forces. That helps stabilize the back of the shoe when you land harder or load the heel at faster paces.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger has an exceptionally firm forefoot across the board. That stiffness gives the front of the shoe a snappy, controlled platform at toe-off, delivering a direct ride during faster efforts. It also keeps the forefoot from collapsing under load, making the shoe more stable.
This shoe's long-run cushioning holds up well as the miles add up, with the A-TPU midsole offering very good impact protection deep into longer efforts.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger's forefoot rocker is on the compliant side for a shoe in its class. Though it gives some guidance through toe-off, it still flattens under load. That said, it helps the shoe roll forward smoothly, though runners wanting a more rigid, levered ride will find the Kiprun Kipstorm Elite to be more aggressive.
This shoe gives back an amazing amount of energy stored as the forefoot bends, providing ample rebound through toe-off. Combined with its carbon plate, this means it's efficient and propulsive as the pace picks up.
The Kiprun Kipstorm Challenger has good forefoot bending stiffness. The shoe resists flexing enough to create a snappy platform at toe-off, without becoming as rigid as carbon-plated racers like the Kiprun Kipstorm Elite. This means the ride is accessible while still being direct and propulsive.