Investor Miles Nadal spends record-breaking $577K on rare Nike sneakers

A Canadian investor has purchased a pair of running shoes dating back to Nike's origins for a record-breaking $437,500 US — or roughly $577,000 Cdn — at public auction.

Miles Nadal won the 1972 Nike Waffle Racing Flat "Moon Shoes" in a Sotheby's online sale on Tuesday, rounding out his collection of 100 pairs of rare footwear.

Designed by Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman, the handmade sneakers feature the signature waffle soles that helped launched the multi-billion dollar athletic brand.

Sotheby's says of the 12 pairs of "Moon Shoes" created for runners at the 1972 Olympic trials, Nadal snagged the only ones known to exist in unworn condition.

The auction house says Nadal purchased the other 99 lots in its first-ever sneaker sale for $850,000 US, or more than $1.1 million Cdn, in a private sale on July 17.

The founder and executive chairman of private investment firm Peerage Capital plans to showcase the shoe collection in his private Toronto museum.