Nike ad highlights physical triumphs of pregnancy, motherhood

What is an athlete? It’s a question Nike poses in its latest ad, and the answer is pretty inspiring.

On Sunday, the activewear brand released a video called “The Toughest Athletes” on YouTube, which highlights a series of pregnant women and new mothers.

“Motherhood looks different for everyone. But no matter what you do or how you do it, you are the toughest athlete,” Nike captioned the clip.

At the beginning of the minute-long ad, a narrator poses the question: “Can you be an athlete? You, pregnant? You, a mother? That depends.”

As the ad progresses and follows a series of real women in their pregnancy and new mother journeys, the narrator begins to define what an athlete really is.

“What is an athlete? Someone who moves? Sounds like you. Someone who gets it done, no matter what? You do that. Someone who listens to her body? Also you. Someone who defies gravity? You. Someone who deals with the pain, hits her limit and pushes past it? … You, you, you.” the narrator says. “So, can you be an athlete? If you aren’t, no one is.”

“The Toughest Athletes” follows more than 20 mothers from the United Kingdom, United States, France, Jamaica, Singapore, Australia and more, Nike explained in a press release. The ad was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and each video shoot was directed via Zoom.

Serena Williams, who’s endorsed by Nike, makes an appearance, playing a bit of tennis with her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. Other famous, athletic mothers, including Olympic hurdler Nia Ali, soccer star Alex Morgan, and runners Perri Edwards, Bianca Williams and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, also join the short ad.

Serena Williams and 3-year-old daughter Olympia are fashion co-stars

The video promotes the launch of Nike’s first maternity collection, called Nike (M), now available online in North America, Europe and Africa. Nike (M) will hit select Asian Pacific and Latin American markets later this year.