Torch of Paris-2024 pays tribute to the Seine and equality – 07/25/2023 – Sport

The Paris-2024 Olympic torch, unveiled this Tuesday (25), features metallic ripples at the bottom to honor the waters of the Seine River, the main stage of the opening ceremony, on July 26, 2024.

Champagne in color, the torch is made from recycled steel and will be reused up to ten times in the flame relay, starting in April.

Only 2,000 will be produced. It was almost triple in previous editions, and the reduction is in line with the sustainability spirit of the event. Each object will be 70 cm and 1.5 kg.

“It is a tribute to the Seine River, but it is also to express the idea of ​​the torch’s journey. Water will be a common thread”, said the responsible designer, the Frenchman Mathieu Lehanneur.

The flame will cross the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans to reach five French territories: Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, French Polynesia and Réunion.

As a tradition, the start will be in Olympia, Greece. Then the fire will cross the Mediterranean to reach France in May, via Marseilles, starting a journey of 68 days.

The relay of 11,000 runners will pass through French postcards, such as Versailles, Lascaux, the Loire Valley, Mont-Saint-Michel and Saint-Emilion vineyards.

“Frankly, I wasn’t a big fan of competition. But it would be impossible to say no to that invitation,” said Lehanneur, who is also responsible for the design of the Olympic cauldron, to be unveiled in the coming months.

“In a project of this type, the most important thing is not the aesthetics or even the elegance. It’s what you want to express. How to transform the values ​​of Paris-2024 into forms?”

The torch’s symmetrical shape represents equality, both in terms of gender and importance, for the Olympic and Paralympic Games – the torch for both events will be the same, with the exception of the logo in the center.

“The idea of ​​equality to me was super important,” Lehanneur said. “It will be the first time in history that the Games will have the same number of athletes of both sexes.”

The champagne color came from the mixture he imagined of the colors of the gold, silver and bronze medals.

To “prevent the champagne color from turning coffee”, he said, because of repeated use of the torches, a special layer will be applied to facilitate cleaning.

A technological novelty of the torch, produced by the multinational ArcelorMittal, is a slit in the upper part.

“We had to design the flame as well, in terms of shape, color and size,” Lehanneur said, adding that it will be lit with biopropane gas.

According to him, the size and thickness of the slit change the shape of the flame, while its material and coating change the color.

“The flame can come out from above, of course, and also from the side, through the slit, so that it can be seen in any weather condition, even with wind or rain.”

The French designer also drew attention to the thickness of the steel, which will be thin for lightness and material reduction, in addition to the mirrored character.

“The torch will be even more beautiful when it reaches nature, reflecting everything around it, or, in front of the sea, reflecting the waters or the sky”, he said.

“In terms of sustainability, lightness is a good point when it comes to transport.”

Lehanneur, who has offices in Paris and New York, is known for sustainable furniture that blends organic and technological materials.

He designed solar-powered light poles for the 2015 Paris Climate Conference, a folding electric bicycle, and a plant-centric filtration system in partnership with Harvard University.

At the moment, he works as an interior designer for a café inside the Louvre museum.

The Paris-2024 torches will not be for sale, and a small number of replicas will be manufactured. Runners will be offered a souvenir symbol of the relay.

Joachim Roncin, head of design for the Olympic Games, said he held a contest at the beginning of the year and attracted around ten designers.

“We looked at the story of the torches to not make something totally anachronistic. We wanted to have a link to all the other torches,” said Roncin.

“But we also really wanted to create something different because that’s what we like to do here at Paris-2024.”