First-of-Its-Kind Olympic Torch Revealed for Paris 2024

We're officially one year out from the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. To mark the occasion, the Olympic organizing committee and French designer Mathieu Lehanneur revealed the unique torch that will be used to carry the iconic Olympic flame around France to its final stop at the cauldron in Paris next year. In many ways, the torch itself is making history. 

Lehanneur explained how he drew inspiration from three themes of next year's Games—equality, water, and peacefulness—to create the sleek steel design. “Equality is symbolized by perfect symmetry. Water is symbolized by the wave, relief, and vibration effects. Peacefulness is symbolized by the gentleness of the curves," he said of the object.

“For Paris 2024, and for the first time in its history, [the torch] plays on perfect symmetry, speaking to us more clearly about equality,” he added, per CNN. “I wanted it to be extremely pure, iconic, almost elemental. As simple as a hyphen and as fluid as a flame.”

It will also be the first torch in the history of the Games to be used for both the Olympics and Paralympics. This was done on purpose as a way to connect the two events, often conceived of separately, under one grand umbrella. “Following our logic of building bridges between the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the latter already shares the same emblem and mascot as the former. At Paris 2024, we will also have a single torch design," Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet said in a statement.

Eco-friendliness was a priority in preparing for the Olympic torch relay. The torch weighs in at a light 3.3 pounds and is made of 100 percent recycled steel. And rather than produce 10,000 torches for the relay as has been standard in the past, manufacturer ArcelorMittal will produce just 2,000 of them to "reduce the impact of production," according to a press release.

Paris 2024 is set to make history in several ways, with the torch being just one piece of the puzzle. A never-before-seen opening ceremony is also planned for the Games as athletes will parade down the river Seine on boats, making it the first Summer Olympic opening ceremony to not take place in a stadium. 

The countdown is on. May Olympians' internal fire burn just as hot as the Olympic flame as they continue training over the next year.