Paris 2024: Discover the design of the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay cauldrons

By Florian Bouhier
3 min|
The cauldrons of the torch relays
Picture by Felipe Ribon

The Paris 2024 Organising Committee has revealed the design of the cauldrons that will collect the flame during the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relays.

Conceived by French designer Mathieu Lehanneur, who had previously collaborated with Paris 2024 on the Olympic torch for the upcoming Games, the cauldron will be lit at the end of each stage of the Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relays by the final Torchbearer.

"During the Torch Relay, the lighting of the cauldron by the last Torchbearer of the day will be a highlight of each day. In each stopover city, the cauldron will be a real meeting point to round off these days of celebration and communion in style," explained Tony Estanguet, president of Paris 2024.

The safety lantern, which contains the sacred Olympic flame that was lit in Olympia throughout the Olympic Torch Relay, will also be lit from this cauldron to ensure the continuity of the flame.

Only on 26 July 2024, the last day of the Olympic Torch Relay, will the dedicated cauldrons make way for the Olympic cauldron at the opening of the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

Manufactured by ArcelorMittal, the Paris 2024 cauldron hides many secrets behind its sleek design, which Olympics.com invites you to discover.

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A cauldron with a key role in the Games

The Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay cauldrons will play a crucial role during the torch relays, as it will be the location where the final Torchbearer deposits the flame in each stopover city.

However, it should not be seen as a singular and individual object, but as an essential part of the relay.

"The torch, the torch relay cauldron and the Olympic cauldron are not separate objects, they are chapters in one great story. Each embodies the spirit of the Paris Games," said French designer Mathieu Lehanneur.

"If the torch is a sacred fire that is passed on, the cauldron is the object around which we gather and which unites our energies."

The colours of both the torch and Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay cauldrons oscillate between gold and silver, and the refined shape of the cauldron is reminiscent of the gentle curves of the torch.

A sleek design, embodying fraternity

With its circular ring, the cauldron is a symbol of fraternity, as well as an invitation to share moments of conviviality at the end of each relay.

The base of the cauldron was shaped by water, while the ring has been pierced by 260 holes to create a circular blaze.

For Lehanneur, designer of the cauldron and the torch, "the cauldron takes the form of a ring of fire suspended above a liquid surface.

"Both pure and magical, it seems to float and reflects itself in its metallic base."

Designer of the Year at Maison & Objet, Lehanneur explains the idea he had at the beginning of his project: simplicity.

"The idea was to make a simple object that would be easy to remember. A child who sees the torch, the torch relay cauldron or the Olympic cauldron should be able to draw them on their own, and it should not be a very complicated object visually.

"The final object should be straightforward to understand, both as a symbol and memory."

Facts and figures about the Torch Relay cauldron

  • 1.35m diameter ring
  • 1.35m wide base
  • 1.15m high, wheelchair accessible
  • 95kg
  • Materials: stainless steel ring, aluminium base