UPDATED: The UA Sportsmask have sold out online. A restock is expected in early August online and offline at its stores in KLCC, Pavilion, Mid Valley Megamall, Sunway Pyramid, 1 Utama and Aeon Tebrau.
It's finally here. The long-awaited UA Sportsmask will be available on www.underarmour.com.my tomorrow, a reusable, water-resistant performance face mask designed for maximum breathability, made for sports and daily use.
In the age of the pandemic, when mask-wearing is near-mandatory, the main choice is the three-layer disposable mask. It's effective to protect others against the wearer's droplets, but isn't comfortable.
Normal cloth masks, meanwhile, need to be more intricately made; certain fabric combinations work better than others at filtering droplets.
This American brand has, through its focus on technology, bridges this gap with the three-layer UA Sportsmask.
The first layer is light but has air pockets for structure, so it stays off the mouth and nose for better airflow. The second layer is breathable that lets air through but makes it hard for moisture and sweat to pass.
The final layer is UA Iso-Chill, that feels cool against the skin, stretches, and is treated with PROTX2, a non-metal anti-microbial technology which inhibits growth of bacteria on the mask.
The PROTX2 has been shown in laboratory tests to destroy Covid-19, and is being reviewed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to confirm the efficacy of the substance as it is applied to the mask.
The brand also has a patent pending on the mask's design and construction.
TEAM SPORT
"I think of wearing masks as a team sport, because it requires the participation of each team member to be successful. When everybody wears masks together, it can be quite effective in reducing the spread of Covid-19, which could be especially important in close-contact environments like a gym or when training with a group," says Dr. Daniel Durand, chief of innovation at regional healthcare organisation LifeBridge Health.
The development of the mask began in March when the company made face masks and personal protective equipment for health and community organisations. It was during this time that founder Kevin Plank mooted the idea of a performance solution that would support athletes navigating the pandemic.
"As soon as we finalised the design of our face mask for PPE, we dove straight into the innovation process of optimising a mask for performance," said vice-president of materials innovation, Kyle Blakely.
Plank's design and Blakely's materials were sent to Ella Mae Holmes, an Under
Armour seamstress and the company's third employee who helped develop the brand's original compression shirt.
Holmes got to work sewing mask prototypes out of her Baltimore home. With input and testing from teammates across product development, Under Armour found success in the 13th iteration of the mask.
"Experience told us that fabric and performance had to be our first focus, so we set out to find a fabric combination that created structure to ensure the mask would stand off the face and offer maximum breathability," added Blakely.
"We applied learnings in fit, feel, and ease and speed of manufacturing from the face mask we created for PPE purposes,"
The mask is tagged at RM109 and is available at www.underarmour.com.my starting tomorrow and from Aug 1 at its stores nationwide except Suria Sabah.
Seize Under Armour sports masks at cheaper costs with Sports Direct Promo Code.