The designer who created the controversial JS Roundhouse Mid sneaker for Adidas has spoken out about his design.

The sneakers, which feature orange shackles, were slated by the online community, with claims that the shackle detail alluded to shackles worn by African slaves.

Now designer, Jeremy Scott, has defended his design, and offered an explanation for his motivation, after Adidas were forced to shelve the design.

Scott took to Twitter to give his side of the story. He explained to his 100,000 plus followers that his designs are entirely inspired by images and toys from his childhood.

"MY WORK HAS ALWAYS BEEN INSPIRED BY CARTOONS, TOYS & MY CHILDHOOD...," he wrote on June 19. The tweet was accompanied by a picture of a stuffed toy monster, which has shackles similar to ones which feature on the Roundhouse sneaker.

Adidas has withdrawn the sneaker following the storm of criticism directed at pictures of the Roundhouse Mid sneaker, which were released on Facebook. The German sportswear company will not be selling the sneaker, which was set to become available for sale in August 2012. Rapper Talib Kweli, was amongst those who launched criticism at the designs.

- By Fiona Guest