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http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/www.vancouversun.com/photo+gallery+2010+olympic+torch+unveiled/1282109/1282125.bin?size=620x400

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/www.vancouversun.com/photo+gallery+2010+olympic+torch+unveiled/1282109/1282126.bin?size=620x400

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http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/www.vancouversun.com/photo+gallery+2010+olympic+torch+unveiled/1282109/1282120.bin?size=620x400

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2010 Olympic torch unveiled


By Jeff Lee, Vancouver SunFebruary 12, 2009 8:52 AM

WHISTLER - If every Olympic torch is supposed to say something about the country in which its Games are being held, then the torch for the Vancouver 2010 Games says cold, bright, expansive and snowy.

With a flourish befitting the unveiling of an art sculpture or a long-lost master, the organizers of the Vancouver Games revealed Thursday their concept of what an Olympic torch should be.

Inspired, Vanoc says, "by both the lines carved into the snow by skiers shushing down mountains and the undulating beauty of the snowy Canadian landscape", the Vancouver torch is a long white and chrome staff utterly different from the racy blue curve of Turin, the red scroll of Beijing, and even the squat wood chrome cauldron of Calgary.

The first of 12,000 of the ski-shaped torches Vanoc will use in a 106-day, 45,000-kilometre journey across Canada made its debut Whistler's village square. It was unveiled with International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge, politicians and Vanoc CEO John Furlong present.

But the torch wasn't the only item revealed. Vanoc also made public the white, green and blue uniform each torchbearer will wear come the time they run their segment of the relay.

The first two torchbearers named, Patricia Moreno, 18, of Vancouver and Caleb Taylor, 35, of Regina, modeled the new Hudson's Bay Company-designed uniforms.

The two were selected by Coca-Cola and RBC, the two co-presenting sponsors of the torch relay.

The torch, nearly a metre in length, was designed by Bombardier, the Canadian aerospace and transportation giant. A team of scientists and designers began working on the project in November, 2007. Bombardier presented Vanoc with a concept last April, and received IOC approval in June. The team spent the summer and fall of 2008 developing the mechanics of the burner before laboratory testing in December.

The design moves away from a traditional cauldron style of flame that other organizing committees have used. Instead, Vanoc says this flame "will unfurl like a flag fluttering in the wind" because the torch has a unique 30-centimetre-long vertical flame outlet.

Bombardier's designers incorporated two unique Canadian items; a red maple leaf air intake cut-out that feeds the flame air, and an engraving of the Games motto "With Glowing Hearts", along with the French version.

The torch design has already proved a hit with Rogge, who in a prepared statement said it was "like Canada – young, exciting, innovative, and welcoming to everyone who sees and holds it.”

“The design of an Olympic Torch is very important,” he said. “It cradles the Olympic Flame and its message of hope, the celebration of excellence, friendship and respect wherever it travels in the world."

Bombardier says the torch is made out of stainless steel, aluminum and a sheet moulding compound. It will be assembled in Canada from primarily Canadian resources.

Once the flame is lit in Olympia, Greece in late October, it will be flown to Victoria, the first stop on the cross-Canada tour. It will finish in Vancouver on Feb. 12, 2010.

jefflee@vancouversun.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun










CTV brought up an interesting point last night: why aren't there any major one-year countdown celebrations in the home of the 2010 Games, Vancouver? Even Calgary is doing more than we are......and it might have to do with the protesters and security issues seen at the clock unveiling and flag raising over the last two years.

Looks like they ruined it for all of us.

wow i actually really like it!

Nice, but the design would have fitted any Nordic country as well and looks no less like a dildo than Torino's or Athen's. There's something about a torch that makes me think the shaft should either have a solid core or rolled-up aesthetic, instead of looking snapped together like a cellphone.

Beijing's scroll is still my favorite.

Wii torch relay?

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3340/3275765070_77a4a053cc_b.jpg

^^Actually,I like the cute little torchbearer more than the torch itself. :D j/k.

Seriously, I like the design, it is really clean and sleek... kind of like a combination of ski, hockey skate-blade and snowboard put together.

First time I saw it, I thought they were holding a broken ski or something.
Wii torch relay?
Lol

Here is a cool link showing the evolution of the Olympic torch:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/08/01/sports/20080802_TORCH_GRAPHIC.html

It's a pretty cool post-modern design for a torch, but I can't shake the feeling that it looks like a cross between a frozen Salmon and a seal club.

It's a pretty cool post-modern design for a torch, but I can't shake the feeling that it looks like a cross between a frozen Salmon and a seal club.

Torino already did the seal club. :D
http://express.howstuffworks.com/gif/exp-torch-1.jpg

http://www.notcot.com/images/o-thumb.jpg

Ohhhhh

why would they show the inside of the torch? surely it adds mystique to just see it on fire, no need to be that detailed...

It looks like Sydney's torch actually.

Not bad, but I still prefer Calgary's. :)

I read on some fourm that it looks like a dildo......I have to agree. :ohno:

I can't decide....a postmodern knife or a marijuana joint?

^^:lol:

I think the Torino's the uglest torch..

I hope I get picked. Any one else apply to be a torch bearer?

I'd feel dirty holding that thing...

^^ ??

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/www.vancouversun.com/photo+gallery+2010+olympic+torch+unveiled/1282109/1282126.bin?size=620x400


That is something I really would not want to wake up to at the end of my bed in the middle of the night...


I quite like the torch design, it does look a tiny bit like a wild sex toy though.

THANKS A LOT FOR SHARING!