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London 2012 Olympic Cauldron...


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I'm surprised to read that they haven't distributed the petals to the different nations yet. I actually expected that to happen shortly after the Paralympics. The best thing would have been if they had given the petals to the delegations while they are leaving the city, as a final souvenir of the Games and only shortly after the cauldron has "wilted" and the petals have been taken off.

The way they'll do it now, it's only a stale afterthought, like "Oh, and before we forget it after all those months - here's your petal, finally". It destroys pretty much of the symbolism of the cauldron's design.

I also ask myself why they kept the petals for so long. Did they clean them and that process took so long?

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The head, the DNA, the so-called 16 or 17 lighters...but so what? One knew they were all controlled by very complicated cables...but where was the humanity? Where was the Greek and human spirit? Nowhere.

I agree that Athens' OC was very heavy intellectually and artistically (it was rather avantgardistic than folksy and joyous) - but if you say that it completely lacked human spirit, you must have closed your eyes when they did those projections on the shards of the broken Cycladic head and the kouros statues. That was one of the most powerful imageries showing the human spirit that I have ever seen in an Olympic ceremony. I'll never forget how my friends fell dead silent when they watched, together with me, those projections of human faces, hands, cells etc. on those shards, accompanied by that highly emotional music by Gustav Mahler. It was a pretty magical moment.

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I agree that Athens' OC was very heavy intellectually and artistically (it was rather avantgardistic than folksy and joyous) - but if you say that it completely lacked human spirit, you must have closed your eyes when they did those projections on the shards of the broken Cycladic head and the kouros statues. That was one of the most powerful imageries showing the human spirit that I have ever seen in an Olympic ceremony. I'll never forget how my friends fell dead silent when they watched, together with me, those projections of human faces, hands, cells etc. on those shards, accompanied by that highly emotional music by Gustav Mahler. It was a pretty magical moment.

I see what you're saying but still projections, much less bits and pieces, are still flat and 2-dimensional. That and the show's other tricks really didn't show that it must all come down to man, the human being. I thought they started out on the right track with the heart beat thing...but then it just got, as you said, very avante garde, And then they did all the mechanical tricks: the Cycladic head, the red "centaur" (a cute touch but you realized afterwards that it was a half-mechanical entity), the man on the cube (I mean cute for a Cirque du Soleil show--but how did it relate to the Os?), the DNA, and what-else-have-you. It was like "...let's bring on the next mechanical bit of stagecraft to wow them and show them that we used the state-of-the-art stage machinery here!" Why was all the joy and pathos and humanity relegated to the Closing where it almost became like a Eurovision show but as a lot observed, closer to the humanity and Greek spirit that we know -- actual warm-blooded bodies, singing and baring their souls out in all the human emotions, not some souless stage object, yes breaking apart, twisting and turning,doing a lot of things that only an inanimate stage prop can do.

The emotions conveyed in the Closing pretty much comprise what Greek drama has given the world all these centuries -- joy, sorrow, despair, elation, what else? , yet what they showed for the Opening was a lot of inanimate objects and warm-blooded human beings pretending to be mannequins :blink: ...with a nod of the head, a wink of an eye, a whole phalanx of guys hemmed in their kouros-diapers? Huh? So coy. Even when the 16-17 lighters representing the past host cities appeared, they were doing a slow-motion "run" -- all simulations of unnatural human movements -- yet there were allusions to the human pulse, that "the Olympics are in the DNA of the human animal" :rolleyes: , etc. Totally contradictory phases of the same prism. The theme was supposed to be a nautical one -- Greece's relation to the sea -- yet the centerpiece of the show, Greece's rigid, non-moving history tableau was staged on the dry land...and at the last minute, I could almost hear Papaioannou directing from a bullhorn: "...oh wait, we forget there is this $25 million fake-lake surface. QUICK! Cast off your costumes and jump into the water with great abandon. Splash around and make like you're all enjoying yourselves." :blink:

[in an interview a few days before the 2008 Beijing Opening (6 August 2008 issue) in Eleftheros Typos, a magazine owned by ATHOC president Gianna and her husband, Theodoros Angeloupoulos, Papaioannou shared a few of his thoughts. The following is from an English translation as appeared on the internet: This is just an excerpt.

Today, watching the ceremony, would you change something?

A lot. It doesn't matter to say what. I would make it more determined, more daring. Watching it again and again, I see things I could change. Four years later, I would make it more tight, more elegant, more powerful.]

I hoped that might've included making it more human; more accessible. But Dmitris, you had only one chance and ya blew it! No re-do's on this one.

See, Fab, you got me started again!! ;)

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I strongly disagree with all of the above. For me the OC was intensely human -- exquisitely so -- encompassing so much of mind, body and spirit. The march of history, the layers of thought and emotion, conflict, resolution, art, science, innovation, discovery. It was a grand pageant of human history that felt movingly universal while being uniquely Greek.

Pappaioannou is his own harshest critic. In my opinion Athens is easily the tightest, most elegant, most powerful ceremony ever. Of course he would do it differently four years later. I think that would be said of anyone. I would love to take another crack at some former projects of mine. We are always learning and growing and our viewpoints are constantly changing and developing. The fact that Pappaioannou would make some changes doesn't take anything away from the splendid ceremony that he did create.

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Rio 2016™ president gets a piece of the London Games' Olympic pyre

Souvenir of the 2012 Games was delivered by Sebastian Coe during the debriefing of the latest edition of the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games

pira_nuzman.jpg

The Rio 2016™ Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee will have a piece of the London 2012 Games to provide inspiration during the cycle before the completion of the first games in South America. The olympic pyre from the London Games were dismembered to be delivered to Olympic Committees leaders who participated in the competitions.

This Sunday, the chairman of LOCOG and the British Olympic Association, Sebatian Coe, gave part of the artifact in the hands of the President of Rio 2016™, Carlos Arthur Nuzman, during the official IOC Debriefing of the London Games.

Rio 2016

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I'm surprised that one can't recognise the inscription anymore - which every petal had (I believe, at the edge around the opening of the petal) with "Games of the XXX Olympiad London 2012" (or so) plus the respective country's name. And according to Insidethegames, this really is the petal of the Brazilian team:

http://www.insidethegames.biz/olympics/summer-olympics/2016/1011729-rio-2016-must-not-be-scared-by-success-of-london-2012

By the way, I found some more interesting articles and videos about the construction of the cauldron.

For example, I didn't know until now that they definitely had different sets of petals for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and that they even had a third set of petals only for the rehearsals.

It's also interesting that they had people produce the petals who didn't know what their real purpose was - they thought that it's for a sculpture in the Olympic Park.

And: When they brought the cauldron from Harrogate to London in June, they told locals that it's the big bell. So the bell just might have been conceived as only a big red herring concealing the cauldron, considering how little it was actually used in the opening ceremony. ;)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/9455886/Inside-the-Olympic-magic-cauldron-factory-at-Stage-One.html

http://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/olympics/wisbech_engineer_stunned_to_see_his_work_in_olympic_cauldron_as_he_watches_london_2012_games_opening_ceremony_on_tv_1_1471228

Regarding the Telegraph article: Thomas Heatherwick also gave that reporter a red herring by saying that the petals would be used in a different way at the Paralympic opening ceremony and that it's going be a treat. The "treat" simply was that unlike at the Olympic opening ceremony, the petals seemed to be connected to the cauldron's stems already way before the ceremony...

Another interesting video - the cauldron lighting at the Olympic opening ceremony, filmed by an audience member:

I think it looks much more magical and impressive here because you can't recognise the stems of the cauldron in that darkness - and the 204 individual flames seem to soar towards each other all on their own. So that's another case where the directors of the international TV feed botched - if even an amateur filmer in the audience could do a better job. ;)

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And the distribution of the individual petals has officially commenced:

07 November 2012 16:27

Olympic and Paralympic cauldron ‘petals’ sent as gifts to competing nations

Today the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) commenced the distribution programme of the handmade copper petals from the cauldron that burned so brightly during the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

Designed by renowned British designer Thomas Heatherwick, the London 2012 cauldron represented every participating nation through a series of handmade copper elements, known as ‘petals’, with one created for every country taking part in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Each National Olympic Committee and each National Paralympic Committee will receive their copper piece by the end of the year. Heatherwick Studio’s vision was that there would not be a large cauldron left after the 2012 Games. Instead, each of the copper petals was to be offered to each country as a memento of their incredible sporting achievements.

During the Opening Ceremony for the Olympic Games the 204 petals for the Olympic cauldron were carried into the Stadium as part of the parade by young people from East London who accompanied each competing nation. The young people placed the petals on the cauldron before it was lit and raised into its upright position. During the Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony the 164 petals representing each nation were pre-set before the parade of nations and prior to the spectacular cauldron lighting sequence.

Sebastian Coe, Chair of LOCOG, said: ‘I am delighted to conclude the story of the cauldron by presenting each National Olympic Committee and each National Paralympic Committee with the copper petal that represented the achievements of their teams at the 2012 Games. Each petal is an iconic symbol of each nation's participation in the London Games and a fitting final gift from London to the world.’

(Source: http://www.london2012.com/news/articles/olympic-and-paralympic-cauldron-petals-sent-gifts-competing-nations.html)

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What is most interesting about its creation and development is that as Heatherwick said, his commission was to involve "...no moving parts."

Yet it had 204 MOVING PARTS!! So the whole thing was conceived and created in a web of deceit, lies and misrepresentations. :lol:

No, it wasn't. It was simply a misconception by the organisers - they originally wanted to avoid serious glitches like in Sydney and Vancouver by all means and therefore thought that they could get an impressive cauldron even if didn't have any moving parts at all. Luckily, Heatherwick then showed them otherwise. ;)

See 51:34:

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Another wonderful moment with the cauldron - its extinguishing at the closing ceremony. Listen to the audience's reaction when the announcers say that the flame will be extinguished. ;)

I don't know how you think about it, but whenever I'm feeling bad (and that currently happens more often than usual, since it's pretty certain that I'll lose my job), the pictures and the memories of the London Games and of moments like this are very comforting for me. Memories from a wonderful summer. It's only three months ago, but it almost seems like half a lifetime to me now.

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No, it wasn't. It was simply a misconception by the organisers - they originally wanted to avoid serious glitches like in Sydney and Vancouver by all means and therefore thought that they could get an impressive cauldron even if didn't have any moving parts at all. Luckily, Heatherwick then showed them otherwise. ;)

See 51:34:

No; I understand what the directive was...and LOCOG were understandably leery of hydraulically-controlled contraptions as seen in Sydney and Vancouver...but Heatherwick still went TOTALLY against the original concept...and gave them 204 moving parts! I mean, it still moves, regardless of how you want to classify it. So, another conundrum in its creation. Yeah, had seen that very revealing video previously.

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London mayor hands Olympic cauldron petals to India

Every country which competed at the London Games was represented by a copper petal on the cauldron designed by Thomas Heatherwick. The petals are now being offered to each country as a legacy of their sporting achievements, and will be delivered around the globe before the end of the year.

In total, 204 Olympic petals and 164 Paralympic petals will be offered to competing nations.

Johnson Monday met V.K. Malhotra, acting president of the Indian Olympic Association, bronze medal winning boxer M.C. Mary Kom and silver medallist pistol shooter Vijay Kumar to present the petals at a ceremony hosted by the British High Commission.

"It's a wonderful honour for me to present these beautiful petals to India as a fitting memento of the achievements of Indian athletes in London this summer," Johnson said.

"The iconic, graceful Olympic cauldron is a potent symbol of the best of British engineering and design, and represents exactly the sort of skills we have to offer the rest of the world, in particular in emerging export markets such as India."

"As mayor, welcoming the world to our fantastic city for the Games was the experience of a lifetime. It's a pleasure to be able to bring these petals to Delhi as a gift from London to thank India for being part of our unforgettable summer," Johnson said.

India's petals were the third set to be presented. The first were handed over by Sebastian Coe, chairperson of the London Games organising committee, to the British Olympic Association, and the second to Brazil.

About 100 school children from Delhi took part in the handover ceremony.

The London mayor is on a five−day visit to India, accompanied by a delegation of top business people, to promote London as the destination of choice for investors and international trade. He will also visit Hyderabad and Mumbai

http://www.business-...to-india/84013/

article_7582caeabd42f065_1353911533_9j-4aaqsk.jpeg

article_6688f5d3c8975489_1353911541_9j-4aaqsk.jpeg

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London mayor hands Olympic cauldron petals to India

Every country which competed at the London Games was represented by a copper petal on the cauldron designed by Thomas Heatherwick. The petals are now being offered to each country as a legacy of their sporting achievements, and will be delivered around the globe before the end of the year.

In total, 204 Olympic petals and 164 Paralympic petals will be offered to competing nations.

Johnson Monday met V.K. Malhotra, acting president of the Indian Olympic Association, bronze medal winning boxer M.C. Mary Kom and silver medallist pistol shooter Vijay Kumar to present the petals at a ceremony hosted by the British High Commission.

"It's a wonderful honour for me to present these beautiful petals to India as a fitting memento of the achievements of Indian athletes in London this summer," Johnson said.

"The iconic, graceful Olympic cauldron is a potent symbol of the best of British engineering and design, and represents exactly the sort of skills we have to offer the rest of the world, in particular in emerging export markets such as India."

"As mayor, welcoming the world to our fantastic city for the Games was the experience of a lifetime. It's a pleasure to be able to bring these petals to Delhi as a gift from London to thank India for being part of our unforgettable summer," Johnson said.

India's petals were the third set to be presented. The first were handed over by Sebastian Coe, chairperson of the London Games organising committee, to the British Olympic Association, and the second to Brazil.

About 100 school children from Delhi took part in the handover ceremony.

The London mayor is on a five−day visit to India, accompanied by a delegation of top business people, to promote London as the destination of choice for investors and international trade. He will also visit Hyderabad and Mumbai

http://www.business-...to-india/84013/

article_7582caeabd42f065_1353911533_9j-4aaqsk.jpeg

article_6688f5d3c8975489_1353911541_9j-4aaqsk.jpeg

pics

MiGod, they're going to try for 204 little ceremonies like these when I thought they just sent the petals home with the teams. Kinda over-stretching the 'moment,' aren't they? And I wonder if there are 2 separate ceremonies per each IOC and IPC nation?

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I doubt they'll have London or LOCOG VIPs presenting all petals to all 204 nations in such solemn ceremonies. But even if they will, I think it would be a nice gesture - and why should they not stretch the moment? Before we head into another boring non-Olympic year, it's good to see some "London Olympic memorial ceremonies" before this Olympic year is over.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Seems like the petals are wrapped around a burner still as they are returned. Is there an intention that the petals could be reconnected to a gas line and re-ignited later? If so, it's a cool idea that all the nations who were in London will have their own personal Olympic flame to light when an Olympics comes around again.

And I for one disagree with 2013 being a "boring" year. Do not forget about the vote in July for 2020.

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You mean in September. The 2020 host city election takes place on September 7. Three days later, on September 10, the IOC will elect its new President.

Well, OK -- 2013 will certainly be a meaningful year for the Olympic Movement as well, but neither the race for the 2020 Games nor for the IOC Presidency is exactly exciting. 2020 has three only fairly exciting candidate cities of which Tokyo should be the clear favourite (and Madrid's bid is a joke like Annecy's 2018 bid) and Thomas Bach seems to be the clear favourite in the race for the IOC Presidency.

Additionally, I always prefer the Olympic years over the non-Olympic years - they offer far more anticipation and excitement, sports instead of sports politics, and not to forget: exciting ceremonies.

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