IDF amputee Shalev Biton in an Adidas ad (Screenshot/X)
Adidas has apologized after pro-Palestinian activists targeted an Israeli campaign featuring Shalev Biton, a former IDF soldier who lost his left leg after being wounded during his military service in 2021.
Biton was one of 11 disabled athletes promoting Adidas’s “Single Shoe” initiative, which allows amputees and others with limb differences to buy only the shoe they need. His inclusion triggered outrage because of his IDF service, with actor Javier Bardem even calling for a boycott of Adidas.
Rather than simply stand behind an inclusion campaign featuring a disabled athlete, Adidas bowed to the backlash and apologized, stressing that the advertisement was only a local Israeli initiative: “It was never our intent to cause offense and we apologize for anyone affected.” The retreat is likely to fuel criticism that the company caved to political pressure over the mere inclusion of an Israeli veteran with a disability.
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