NEW BALANCE SC ELITE V6 REVIEW
On paper, New Balance doesn't do things by halves. The SC Elite v6 is the brand's tech showcase for race day: lighter than ever, a new Infinion foam and a reworked carbon plate, thicker and stiffer under the forefoot to maximise propulsion, from 5K to the marathon. In short, the shoe for runners chasing their best time. In theory, that was the plan for the whole team. So rather than a nice flat lap of the track, it was thrown straight in at the deep end: Marseille-Cassis, 20 kilometres, the climb up the Gineste, then the long descent to the sea. On race day, five of them had it on their feet: Elven, Anis, Alex, Dorian and Jean. Lightweight, propulsive, formidable: all that was left was to see if the promise held up on the road.
Tester: Elven Coindard (1st U23 at Marseille-Cassis 2025)
Backed up by: Anis, Alex, Dorian and Jean
Test conditions: training sessions and Marseille-Cassis 2026 (20 km, roughly 400 m of climbing)
Looks
First contact, love at first sight for Elven: the design is wild, there's no other word for it. Aggressive silhouette, carbon plate exposed at the midfoot, the SC Elite v6 really looks the part. In the elite corral at Marseille-Cassis, you couldn't miss it: New Balance had put them everywhere. And it matched the Jolie Foulée team's Smiley Sicilia kit perfectly.
Comfort
The detail that struck Elven most fits in one line: the laces go through the tongue twice. Usually, you only see one loop. That double pass changes everything: no need to crank the laces to get a locked-in foot, and the hold stays flawless. For someone who often ends up with cut-off circulation in shoes with a thin tongue, it's a real relief.
On cushioning, Dorian is adamant: top cushioning, top comfort. Elven would have liked a touch more softness over a distance like this, but once the bib is pinned on, he always puts responsiveness ahead of comfort. The one real warning: sizing. The SC Elite v6 runs rather small, with a narrow fit. Ideally, try it on in a store and don't hesitate to size up.
Performance
This is where the v6 makes the difference. It's responsive, very responsive. Some will say too much for a half marathon, Elven thinks it's incredible. And that liveliness comes with real stability, which is a must on the Gineste descent as you fly down towards Cassis. Dorian also found it very stable, and sees it more as a weapon for long distances: over 5 or 10 km, he finds it a little less snappy, and a bit heavier than some other carbon shoes. Over 20 km and 400 metres of climbing, it was right at home.
The times speak for themselves. Anis “walked” up the Gineste at 3:50 per kilometre before finishing 13th in 1:04:17. Alex (1:12:08), Dorian (1:13:09) and Jean (1:14:38) round out a pretty decent set of times. As for Elven, his knee had the final say: after going out with the lead pack, he wisely put the indicator on and jogged the rest of the way to Cassis. The verdict within the team is simple: those who nailed their race loved the shoe, and those who suffered came up with all kinds of excuses, but none of them blamed the shoe. All the details, and all our bad faith, are in our Marseille-Cassis 2026 report card.
Our verdict on the New Balance SC Elite v6
A responsive, stable and good-looking super shoe, built for racing and for the clock.
What we loved about the New Balance SC Elite v6: its responsiveness, its stability on descents, its double-pass lacing that holds the foot without strangling it, and its design. We'd have liked a bit more cushioning for very long distances and a few grams less. For runners looking for a lively and reassuring carbon shoe for the half or the full marathon, especially on a hilly course, it's an excellent choice. And if you're still torn between super shoes, we've also put the Nike Alphafly 4 and the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2 to the test. As for Elven, it's exactly the kind of shoe he loves.
- Weight: 190 g for the men's version, around 155 g for the women's version
- Sizing: runs rather small with a narrow fit, try it on in store and size up if needed
- Drop: 8 mm
- Stack: 40 mm at the heel, 32 mm at the forefoot
- Price: around €280
- Technology: Infinion foam, Energy Arc carbon plate, FantomFit upper, double-pass lacing through the tongue
- Availability: since 6 August 2026
As with most of our tests, the product was provided by the brand for the purpose of the review.