Rio de Janeiro organisers have unveiled the torch for the 2016 Olympic games. Made from recycled aluminium and resin and given a satin finish, the torch will open with different visible segments when the flame is passed from one torchbearer to another.
The recycled aluminium torch was created by Sao Paulo based design studio Chelles and Hayashi. Each torch weighs between 1 and 1.5 kilogram and measures 63.5 centimeters when contracted and 69 centimeters when expanded. On expanding vertically, the segments will reveal “the elements that add the Brazilian flavor,” with soil, sea, mountains, sky, and sun represented in the colours of the Brazilian flag; green, yellow, blue, and white. Organisers said the torch presents the Olympic spirit with its texture. The triangles running the length of its body suggest the three Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect, and the floating effect of its different segments, refer to the efforts of the athletes.
Beth Lula, brand director for the local organising committee said, “The design of the Rio 2016 torch was inspired by the Olympic spirit, our country's nature, and the harmonious diversity and energy of our people. We used the specific stroke of the Rio 2016 brand to design the torch's contours.”
“We want to show the world the chemistry that we believe will be born when the Olympic flame meets the warmth of the Brazilian people,” local organising committee president Carlos Nuzman said.
12,000 torchbearers will carry the Olympic flame across 300 cities and towns of 26 Brazilian states and the federal district. The relay is expected to start in May in Brasilia and continue for about 100 days. The torch will travel nearly 12,400 miles of Brazilian roads and fly around 10,000 miles over the north and mid-west parts of the country.
The unveiling was made in a ceremony attended by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in the capital of Brasilia.
