Built for Peak Performance
Richard Mille partners up with Olympic medalists and world-record holders for a brand-new watch designed specifically to perform at the highest level of sports
t takes a certain watch to be
able to withstand the blurring speeds of a world-record-holder sprinter. A watch going up to the dizzying heights of an Olympic medalist will require specific upgrades. It will take a watch so uniquely adapted that it is practically a second skin, while allowing a form of “symbiosis” with the athlete. Richard Mille had the desire to create just the watch.
Wayde Van Niekerk is an Olympic Gold medalist and world-record-holder for the 300 and 400 metre sprint. The multidisciplinary athlete is also the only sprinter to have run the 100 metres in under 10 seconds, the 200 metres in under 20 seconds, the 300 metres in under 31 seconds, and the 400 metres in under 44 seconds.
Richard Mille’s newest partner is Mutaz Essa Barshim—mr High Jump himself. The native of Doha is an Olympic medalist twice over, and has turned in the four best performances worldwide in the last five years, solidifying his position as the discipline’s next recordholder, 24 years after Javier Sotomayor. The Richard Mille teams started by reworking its lines to highlight its athletic qualities. The incorporation of four extensions, in addition to being a hallmark of the brand’s sports watches, contributes to reinforcing the case structure.
The case is crafted in Carbon TPT® and Quartz TPT®, composite materials exclusive to Richard Mille that possess exceptional shock resistance. The slimness of the bezel, caseband, and caseback assembly in no way reduces its physical properties, nor its ability to handle any situation that might occur while engaging in the peak level of sports.
The secret of the Quartz TPT® lies in the layering of silica filaments with a maximum diameter of 40 microns. These are assembled by a dedicated machine that modifies the fibres’ orientation at each layer, before infusing the three newly developed coloured resins: crimson for the RM 67-02 High Jump associated with Mutaz, yellow and green for the RM 67-02 Sprint for Wayde, who is from South Africa.
The Carbon TPT® used for the caseband is produced through the same process, using carbon fibres. The calibre CRMA7 with its satin-finished, beveled hands and sharp lines, conveys a sense of power and strength. The dial is machined from a sheet of titanium with its lines echoing those of the movement. For superlative wearing enjoyment of the RM 67-02, Richard Mille has equipped the timepieces with new comfort straps.
The straps are highly elastic, entirely seamless and non-slip. They perfectly fit the contours of each wrist, adapting to individual morphology. As the lightest strap the brand has ever created, it has helped lighten the RM 67-02 to just 32 grams. This makes the RM 67-02 the lightest automatic watch of the Richard Mille collection.