Torch 2004 One of the two Torches that you can explore by touch comes from the Athens 2004 Games. It is the original Torch used at the Athens Olympic Games. It was designed by Andreas Varotsos, inspired by the olive leaf, and is a harmonious combination of aluminum and wood. The choice of the two materials represents the balance between nature and humanity. Depicted on its metal side are the kotinos within a blue squared background, the Olympic emblem, and the words “Athens 2004”. Below this is carved the Olympic symbol with the five rings. Inside the torch lies the mechanism for lighting the flame. Torch 2022 The 2022 Torch is the original one, and comes from the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, where Beijing became the first city to have hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. The torch is made of carbon fiber, a light and particularly heat-durable material. The design resembles fluttering gymnastics ribbons. It consists of two metal leaves that swirl together, creating a dynamic spiral shape. The flame mechanism is located in the space between the two rotating leaves. The outer leaf is silver and embraces the interior, metallic red leaf. Lower, the handle is deep red with spirals and snowflakes decorating its exterior. In the middle of the Torch there is an emblem of the 2022 event. It is an artistic rendition of the Chinese ideogram for “winter”. Below the emblem there is the epigraph “Beijing 2022” and further below is the Olympic symbol, the five rings, all in the color red. The swirling shape of the Torch is a reference to the winding Great Wall of China, while there is symbolic reasoning behind the choice of the two colors. The color red represents fire and silver represents ice “bringing light and warmth to the world of ice and snow”.