This is what the Paris 2024 Olympic torch will look like
The sporting extravaganza will get underway a year from today: July 26, 2024
This torch boasts a slimmer and sleeker design than previous iterations
Paris 2024 https://www.paris2024.org/fr/
The design of the Olympic torch for Paris 2024 has been unveiled.
Sleeker and slimmer than normal, the eye-catching torch is “symmetric for the first time”, claimed its creator Mathieu Lehanneur.
It took him six months to design the prototype. He says it represents three key aspects of next year’s Olympics: equality, appeasement, and the city of Paris.
Around 2,000 will be made for use in the Olympic and Paralympic relays before the Games start next summer in Paris.
The 1.5kg torches will be made out of recycled steel. A large part of their production will take place in France.
The torch will land in Marseille in May 2024. It will then go on a relay journey around the country before arriving in Paris for the opening ceremony on July 26 - one year from today.
Futuristic design
Each torch will be made out of two sheets of steel, overlapping to create the lamp design.
Equality is shown “through symmetry between the bottom and top of the torch”, said Mr Lehanneur.
The host city is highlighted through “its relationship to the Seine, with wave… effects on the middle of the torch,” he added.
The final aspect, appeasement, is represented through the torch’s design – “soft, rounded curves, to remind us that this torch, which is intended to be passed on, is above all a sign of generosity.”
The Olympic cauldron – the final resting place of the flame after its relay through France – will be revealed at a later date.
Eco-friendly production
Aside from being made using recycled steel, the torches will also be primarily produced in France, keeping a lower carbon footprint.
ArcelorMittal, the company charged with making the torch, will use their plant in Châteauneuf (Loire), then buildings in Florange and Woippy (Moselle), before the final shaping is done abroad.
The company also produced Olympic torches for the 2012 London Games.
Despite the company making 2,000 torches, this is “six times less” than for previous Games, said Thierry Reboul, executive director of Paris 2024.
Paris 2024 is aiming to be the most eco-friendly Olympics held.
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