Dublin runner Abby Steiner is suing Puma and the Mercedes Formula 1 team over a shoe design she says derailed her career.
Steiner, who began wearing Pumas in 2022, has had multiple surgeries since, including three on her left foot. She alleges that the improper design of the shoes caused “severe and permanent injuries” that cut her running career short. The Mercedes Formula 1 team is named in the lawsuit because the company was involved in the design and sale of Puma footwear, according to the complaint.
Steiner graduated in 2018 from Dublin Coffman High School, where she competed in track and soccer.
Here’s what to know about Steiner and her lawsuit against Puma:
Who is Abby Steiner?
Steiner is a two-time world champion and four-time NCAA national champion sprinter. She is also the NCAA record holder for the 200-meter sprint and the U.S. indoor 200 and 300-meter races.
Steiner had a prolific collegiate track career at Kentucky. She won two national titles in the 200-meter indoor as well as titles in the 200 and 4×400-meter outdoor races. She holds multiple school records, including in the 200-meter and 300-meter indoor and outdoor races. She was also named to the 2018 SEC All-Freshman women’s soccer team.
Steiner was part of the U.S. relay teams that won the 4×100 and 4×400 in the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon. The following year, she had a procedure to remove a bone spur in her left heel pressing against an Achilles, as well as Haglund’s Deformity surgeries to remove enlarged bumps on the backs of both heel bones. She had a second bone surgery on the left heel in 2024.
Despite the surgeries, Steiner competed in the 200-meter dash at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, finishing sixth.
In 2025, Steiner posted on Instagram that she had a third surgery on her left foot, though she did not specify details of the procedure. She wrote that she was stepping back from running to pursue other passions and had also been accepted into the University of South Carolina’s master’s program in exercise science.
Why is Abby Steiner suing Puma?
Attorneys representing Steiner, 26, filed a product liability lawsuit April 14 in a Massachusetts court.
Steiner said she started wearing Puma’s shoes in September 2022 for training and competition. Because of improperly manufactured shoes, the suit contends, she developed “severe and permanent injuries resulting in multiple surgeries, rehabilitations and recovery” that ended her competitive career, including competing for the Olympics.
The complaint alleges the mechanism of the shoe changed how the stress of running affected the rest of the body, and that Puma and Mercedes knew the shoes could cause bone stress injuries.
Steiner is seeking damages, in an amount to be determined at a trial, for physical and emotional injury, medical expenses, lost revenue from sponsorships, and the loss of full enjoyment of life.
As of April 28, none of the named defendants has filed a response or attorney appearance with the court. A response is due by Aug. 24, according to the court’s website.
Dispatch reporter Anna Lynn Winfrey also contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: The case behind Dublin track star Abby Steiner’s lawsuit against Puma
Reporting by Dan Aulbach, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
