The Olympic flame, an ancient tradition

The flame has its origins in ancient Greece. Before each Games, which were always held in Olympia, the sacred fire was lit there by concentrating the sun's rays onto a parabolic mirror. The fire was then carried to the Games site by relay runners. This ritual symbolized Olympic peace, a sacred truce allowing athletes and spectators to travel safely to Olympia. Once lit, the flame was tended by priests and burned throughout the Games. Not yet in a cauldron as we know it today, but on the altar of Zeus, honoring the gods and uniting the Greek city-states.

The cauldron, an invention linked to the modern Games

It was in 1896 that the Games ceased to be held solely in Olympia but in various cities around the world, ushering in the era of the modern Games, championed by the historian Pierre de Coubertin. At the first Games of this kind, in Athens in 1896, a flame was lit, but without a torch relay or a permanent Olympic cauldron. Many subsequent editions followed without any flame being lit. For example, at the 1900 Paris Games, no flame was associated with the event. In 1924, again in Paris, a symbolic flame was lit in a brazier at the Colombes stadium, already highlighting the importance of design in Olympic symbolism. But it was at the following edition that the tradition truly revived the flame – the cauldron in its current form would soon make its appearance.

Parade during the Olympic Games in Paris, July 12, 1924.

It was in 1928, at the Amsterdam Games, that the Olympic Games truly revived the tradition of the Olympic flame. That year, it was lit in Olympia, but without a relay to the host city. It was in 1936, for the Berlin Games, that the first modern relay was organized, and the torch and its receptacle became central elements of the opening ceremony, at the suggestion of Carl Diem, a German academic, sports and physical education theorist who had participated in organizing those Games. The torch departed from Olympia to symbolize the continuity between ancient Greece and the modern Games, and at the end of its journey, the cauldron was lit in the stadium. Subsequent editions of the Games have maintained this tradition, also keeping the cauldron as a symbol of the event. Each edition since then features a unique cauldron, designed to reflect the culture and values ​​of the host country, and which can also be an opportunity to reinvent the ritual. Thus, the cauldron for the Barcelona 1992 Games was lit by a flaming arrow, while that of Beijing 2008 was designed in the shape of a giant scroll.

Beijing Olympic Games, 2008.

Paris 2024, an unforgettable ceremony

Grandiose would surely be an understatement to describe the opening ceremony of the Paris Games on July 26, 2024. There was the kickoff on the Austerlitz Bridge, which was ablaze with the colors of the French flag. There was the athletes' parade, an unprecedented procession of 85 boats on the Seine, from the Quai d'Austerlitz to the Eiffel Tower. There was a magnificent showcase of French culture and a true demonstration of French expertise in all areas of creation, from fashion to live performance, including art and video games. There were spectacular shows: Lady Gaga on the Île Saint-Louis, Gojira at the Conciergerie, Sofiane Pamart and Juliette Armanet on the Seine, Aya Nakamura and the Republican Guard on the Pont des Arts... There were so many unforgettable moments in this ceremony, watched by more than 24 million viewers in France and broadcast in 222 countries.

Amidst all this excitement, the flame made its way to the cauldron. Its journey began on April 16, 2024, in Olympia, after being lit according to tradition. It then arrived in France, in Marseille, on May 8, traversing 68 French territories before reaching Paris. During the ceremony, its torch relay was carried by numerous sporting legends such as Zinédine Zidane, Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams, Carl Lewis, and Amélie Moresmo before its final lighting by Marie-José Pérec and Teddy Riner at 23:24 PM in the Tuileries Garden, symbolizing the official start of the Games.

The Olympic torch relay between Rafael Nadal and Amelie Mauresmo takes place during the opening ceremony of the Paris Games, on July 26, 2024.

A unique and innovative washbasin

The world was then able to discover the iconic cauldron of the Paris 2024 Games: an elegant, 12-meter-high structure, light, magical, and unifying—a ring of fire carried by a balloon capable of soaring to a height of 60 meters, designed to blend seamlessly into the Parisian landscape. Made of stainless steel and blown glass, The design of this basin was conceived by Matthieu Lehanneurin collaboration with a multitude of companies, artisans, and manufacturers. The supply of stainless steel for the basin's structure was entrusted to ArcelorMittal, while Goude Glass was commissioned for the technical glass elements. The construction of the final basin was entrusted to Atelier Blam, which also worked on the overall project feasibility, in collaboration with EDF. Lumières Utiles provided the control and management system for the LED lighting and water misting, and Gauthey Industrie manufactured the electrical cabinets necessary for the basin's operation. The firm artéOh coordinated the on-site installation. The company Aerophile designed and manufactured the tethered balloon that carries the cauldron to a height of 60 meters. and that Belle Environnement participated in the logistics and installation of the whole thing, while EDF developed the electric flame.

This iconic cauldron has made its mark on Olympic history not only because it was conceived with a flame that burns without combustion, free from all pollution, a symbol of sustainable innovation. It is, in fact, 100% electric; the 7-meter diameter ring encircling the cauldron contains not fire, but water and light: 200 high-pressure misting nozzles produce a cloud of water vapor, illuminated by 40 LED spotlights and sculpted by fans. This technical feat produces the effect of flickering and smoke, like a real flame, regardless of the weather conditions (during the Paris Games, the actual Olympic flame was kept in a lantern). When the cauldron is aloft, a pipe supplies it with water and air. The balloon itself is a nod from the designer to French history and the early balloon flights of the Montgolfier brothers and the physicist Jacques Charles: the former designed a hot air balloon in which the scientist Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes took to the skies for the first time in 1783; the latter, a few weeks later, launched from the Tuileries Garden, achieved the first flight in a hydrogen-filled gas balloon. This same symbol resonates today, in a land renowned for its excellence in design and innovation.

September 19, 1783: Hot air balloon launch at Versailles in the presence of King Louis XVI by the Montgolfier brothers. Engraving from the book Album of famous scientific discoveries in 1899

A legendary cauldron that also embodies the legacy and environmental commitment of Paris 2024: it is, in fact, demountable and reusable, a first in the history of the Games, making it possible to consider its reinstallation in the Tuileries Gardens until the Los Angeles Games in 2028, thus extending its role as a symbol and tourist attraction well beyond the closing of the Paris Games. In 2025, the invention of designer Mathieu Lehanneur attracted some 2,5 million visitors.

This choice symbolizes the desire to perpetuate the Olympic legacy and will surely help to rekindle the flame of the Games, and of creation.

Summer 2025 at the Tuileries Gardens, in Paris.

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How did they bring the Paris 2024 Olympic ceremony to life? Thomas Jolly and Thierry Reboul were on the Plein Cadre stage at We Are French Touch 2024.