Smooth, sleek and chic is the look for the next Olympic torch. Unveiling his creation in Paris on Tuesday, French designer Mathieu Lehanneur said he drew inspiration from three themes of next year’s Games: equality, water and peacefulness.

“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 said in a statement. “I wanted it to be extremely pure, iconic, almost elemental. As simple as a hyphen and as fluid as a flame.”

Weighing 3.3 pounds, Lehanneur’s champagne-colored torch features a ripple effect designed to evoke moving water. Manufacturer ArcelorMittal will use 100% recycled steel to produce 2,000 of them — five times fewer than at previous Olympic games — in order to “reduce the impact of production,” according to a press release.

It will be the first torch in the history of the Games to be used for both the Olympics and Paralympics. Past designs have shared similarities but have varied in shape and color. This is part of the organizing committee’s strategy to “build bridges between the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Paris 2024’s president Tony Estanguet said in a statement.

Over the decades, the torch’s appearance has become an important part of Olympic custom. Often a visual representation of the host country, recent designs have embodied the sleek architecture of the Sydney Opera House (in 2000); a folkloric phoenix feather, an omen of good fortune in Russia (Sochi’s 2014 Winter Olympics); and the natural beauty of the Brazilian landscape (Rio 2016).

The torch designs, usually selected by the host city’s organizing committee, have also evolved, and now usually come from esteemed designers and artists. Known for designing furniture and accessories, Lehanneur has had works featured in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York and the Pompidou Center Paris.

After being set alight in Olympia using sunlight reflected off a parabolic mirror (a representation of the might of the Greek god Apollo), the torch will be passed hand to hand by some 10,000 torchbearers as it travels from Greece to France.

The flame is due to reach the Olympic cauldron in Paris on July 26, 2024. It will remain lit until the closing ceremony two weeks later. The flame is then put out and re-lit for the Paralympics, which takes place Aug. 28 to Sept. 8, 2024.

The Paris Olympics looks set to be a luxury-filled affair, with French conglomerate LVMH announcing its sponsorship of the event on Monday. One of the company’s jewelry brands, Chaumet, is set to design the competition medals, while LVMH-owned labels Louis Vuitton and Dior will also be involved, as will Moët Hennessy champagne.

Words to Learn 相关词汇

【民俗的】mínsú de folkloric related to traditional customs, tales, sayings or art forms

【预兆】yùzhào omen an event regarded as a portent of good or evil

光滑、圆润、别致是下一届奥运火炬的设计风格。

法国设计师马蒂厄•勒汉努尔周二在巴黎发布了他的作品，设计灵感来自奥运会的三大象征意义：平等、水与平和。

他在一份声明中说：“2024 年巴黎奥运会的火炬史上首次体现了完美的对称性，象征平等。“我希望它极其纯粹简洁，具有标志性，像连字符一样简单，像火焰一样流畅。”

勒汉努尔的香槟色火炬重 3.3 磅，其波纹效果让人联想到流动的水。根据一份新闻稿，生产商安赛乐米塔尔公司将使用100%的回收钢材生产2000支火炬，比往届奥运会少五倍，以“减少生产对环境的影响”。

这将是奥运会历史上第一支同时用于奥运会和残奥会的火炬。以往奥运会和残奥会火炬的设计相似但形状和颜色各不相同。2024 年巴黎奥运会组委会主席托尼•埃斯唐盖在一份声明中说，这体现了组委会“在奥运会和残奥会之间建起桥梁”的战略。

几十年来，火炬已成为奥运习俗的重要组成部分。近年的火炬设计通常代表主办国的形象，如悉尼歌剧院的流线型建筑（2000 年）、俄罗斯民间吉祥物凤凰羽毛（2014 年索契冬奥会）以及巴西的自然美景（2016 年里约）。

火炬设计不断演变，通常由主办的奥组委选定，现在常出自受人尊敬的设计师和艺术家之手。勒汉努尔因设计家具和配饰闻名，其作品曾被纽约现代艺术博物馆和巴黎蓬皮杜艺术中心收藏。

火炬在奥林匹亚被抛物面镜反射的阳光点燃后（代表希腊太阳神阿波罗的威力），将由约 10000 名火炬手手手相传，从希腊来到法国。

圣火将于 2024年7月26日到达巴黎的奥运主火炬。圣火将一直燃烧到两周后的闭幕式。圣火熄灭后将为8月28日至9月8 日举行的残奥会重新点燃。

法国企业集团路威酩轩周一宣布赞助巴黎奥运会，看来这将是一场奢华的盛会。该公司旗下的珠宝品牌之一尚美将设计比赛奖牌，路易威登和迪奥以及酩悦轩尼诗香槟也将参与其中。(SD-Agencies)