US Patent 7337558 Split sole dance shoe having enhanced flexibility and support

A shoe includes a shoe upper made of flexible material, the shoe upper including a toe region, a heel region, a foot opening at the heel region, and an arch region extending between the toe region and the heel region. A split sole is secured to a bottom of the shoe upper, the split sole including a front sole under the toe region of the shoe upper and a rear sole under the heel region of the shoe upper, the front and rear soles being spaced from one another for defining a gap between the front and rear soles that extends along the bottom of the shoe upper. The dance shoe also includes an elastic material attached to the bottom of the shoe upper and covering the gap between the front and rear soles, whereby the elastic material covers an underside of the dance shoe, and at least one support band attached to the shoe upper and being connected with the elastic material for supporting the elastic material and for minimizing wrinkling, puckering, pinching and sagging of the elastic material in the arch region of the shoe upper.