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The Cauldron


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Look, I just want the thing to be visible. I don't care if it's lit by a Phoenix, a missile, an arrow or just a handheld torch, but it's got to be clearly visible.

It still would have been nice to have the final 2 torchbearers climb up a heap of stairs and meet the little girl at the top. Would have rounded out the whole ceremony.

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Actually, no, not quite. You would have had the announcer say the past Olympic hosts in Russian, whilst each step lit up. The music within the stadium going louder and faster to build momentum. You could even give them a break by having someone else take the torch halfway. It would have been a bit long yes, but nicer than this cheater's pyrotechnics they ended up using.

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Actually, no, not quite. You would have had the announcer say the past Olympic hosts in Russian, whilst each step lit up. The music within the stadium going louder and faster to build momentum. You could even give them a break by having someone else take the torch halfway. It would have been a bit long yes, but nicer than this cheater's pyrotechnics they ended up using.

Not feeling it. Maybe if you pitch it to PC they will hire you to direct.

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I do think the IOC need to get a bit stricter on the cauldron - we're going to have 4 games in a row where compromises have had to be made.

The IOC are rather boxed into a corner, unfortunately. Nothing says "bloated extravagance" like burning a huge flame, shown on TV across the world, for weeks on end.

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Correct me if I am wrong, (or if discussed earlier) but did the flame from the torch actually light the cauldron- or was it just the trigger for lighting effects (ala Torino). I think if the ACTUAL flame travels 357,993,336,229 Kms it should travel the last 10metres and actually light the cauldron!

And, was it confirmed that the final torch was the one taken into space? Was not mentioned in the coverage I have seen.

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Oh God, are we going to get another 100 pictures of something everybody already saw?? Jeez...

No, it's just a few pictures of the main subject of this thread and the end of months of discussing about it

no one posted similar photos of this event .. so I posted some for the archive of our forums
all are from the Russian forums in SSC
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Didn't someone post an instagram video of the flame traveling along the ground out of the stadium and up into the cauldron about a week before the Games? Maybe this was the original lighting method but it didn't pan out.

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Correct me if I am wrong, (or if discussed earlier) but did the flame from the torch actually light the cauldron- or was it just the trigger for lighting effects (ala Torino). I think if the ACTUAL flame travels 357,993,336,229 Kms it should travel the last 10metres and actually light the cauldron!

And, was it confirmed that the final torch was the one taken into space? Was not mentioned in the coverage I have seen.

There is no conclusive evidence that I am aware of regarding the lighting.

I could be wrong, but from what i remember, if you watch the footage once the community cauldron is lit, the diagonal jets appear to start themselves on auto ignition - the first one does not appear to touch or be ignited by the community cauldron. When one thinks about it an open gas jet spray in the direction of the community cauldron might have been dangerous for the lighters. In any case it is a theatrical moment, and although a part of me doesn't like it puristically its hard to ignore, that for most people they don't really care.

Even looking at Vancouver, not as obviously as Turin, there was probably auto ignition used to light each of the five main burners, it is unlikely that the fire lit on each pole lit those four lower burners as it would have to go inside to the pylon on out on the top and in case the central burner of the 5 would have to be auto ignited. London's cauldron may have used open gas to light beyond the the 8 petals lit by the young athletes, but there was quite a bit of distance between the petals when they were in the down position, so i dont know how dangerous that would have been, i would suspect it was auto ignited.

Ultimately these things are symbolic and theatrical, I am happy if they are at least are plausibly lit in a way that looks like it was ignited (ie not like Turin), but I agree it seems a shame after such a long journey.

With your question re space torch. I am not sure either as I could not find anything in regard to it being used. However, as a guide, I know the sydney 2000 torch that flew on the space shuttle had no internal burner components and was an empty shell to save as much weight as possible.

*** the first flame jet in this video seems to be going away from the community cauldron

flame-lighting.gif

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Correct me if I am wrong, (or if discussed earlier) but did the flame from the torch actually light the cauldron- or was it just the trigger for lighting effects (ala Torino). I think if the ACTUAL flame travels 357,993,336,229 Kms it should travel the last 10metres and actually light the cauldron!

And, was it confirmed that the final torch was the one taken into space? Was not mentioned in the coverage I have seen.

This sort of cauldron lighting is mechanical and once the last torch runner lights the ignition switch or little cauldron with the fire like Turin, Guadalajara (Pan-Am) or Sochi, then the fire itself activates automatically the rest of the system until it goes to the main cauldron. This is what some engineers who were in charge of the Guadalajara 2011 Pan-Am Games explained me. It makes it easier and avoid any difficulty during the climax of that moment.

Just like many here, I also don't like that, so I prefer by far a classical and simple way to light the cauldron. The last time it was seen in the Olympics was in Nagano. The stairs and the cauldron on top looks more exciting and gives a real Olympic picture.

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This sort of cauldron lighting is mechanical and once the last torch runner lights the ignition switch or little cauldron with the fire like Turin, Guadalajara (Pan-Am) or Sochi, then the fire itself activates automatically the rest of the system until it goes to the main cauldron. This is what some engineers who were in charge of the Guadalajara 2011 Pan-Am Games explained me. It makes it easier and avoid any difficulty during the climax of that moment.

Just like many here, I also don't like that, so I prefer by far a classical and simple way to light the cauldron. The last time it was seen in the Olympics was in Nagano. The stairs and the cauldron on top looks more exciting and gives a real Olympic picture.

I see what you and runningrings are saying about the enduring image of a normal lighting, it is noble and honest.

Personally, I don't mind elaborate, as long as it is a legitimate lighting without auto ignition, ie Sydney, Athens (and tolerate the appearance as given in Beijing & London.)

The others are problematic for me also.

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