Objective To evaluate the comfort and safety of footwear for the elderly males wearing experimentally modified shoes during fast walking, so as to provide data references for footwear of the elderly. Methods A total of 16 male subjects aged 55-65 years old were required to wear three different types of sports shoes. The visual analogue scale (VAS) and plantar pressure parameters were used to comprehensively evaluate the sports shoes in terms of subjective comfort and biomechanics. Vertical ground reaction force ( vGRF), center of pressure (COP) displacement and friction coefficient were used to evaluate the safety of sports shoes in terms of attenuation characteristics, gait stability and slip resistance. Results In the 2nd-5th phalangeal region, the average and peak pressures of B shoes were significantly lower than those of A shoes. In the 2nd-4th metatarsal region, the peak pressure of B shoes was lower than that of C shoes. In the 5th metatarsal region, the average and peak pressures of C shoes were significantly lower than those of A shoes and B shoes. In the medial area of foot arch, the average pressure of C shoes was significantly higher than that of A shoes and B shoes. On the outside of the arch area, the average pressure of B shoes was significantly lower than that of C shoes, and the peak pressure was significantly lower than that of A shoes. The 1st peak of vGRF between three pairs of shoes was significantly different. The 2nd peak of vGRF of B shoes was significantly lower than that of C shoes. COPX-LR displacement of C shoes was significantly larger than that of A shoes and B shoes, COPXD displacement of C shoes was significantly larger than that of B shoes. The peak friction coefficient of B shoes during push-off stage of the foot was significantly higher than that of A shoes and C shoes, and the peak time of C shoes at landing stage was significantly slower than that of B shoes. Conclusions B shoes have good safety performance. However, further improvement is needed to reduce plantar pressure in the 5th phalangeal region. In designing footwear for the elderly, if the thick sole design is merely adopted to achieve the effect of shock absorption and cushioning, it may bring negative influences on gait stability of the elderly.