The Torch of the Torino 2006 Winter Olympics, officially presented today at Palazzo Marino (Milan), boasts the Pininfarina signature. According to the partnership agreement with Toroc, Pininfarina - in the guise of “Official Supplier” - is responsible for the design of the Torch and will produce and supply 12,000 numbered units to Torino 2006.

“It's a honour for Pininfarina”, said CEO Andrea Pininfarina, “to be a partner in the Olympic Games and to support a project in which the entire country believes. This partnership with Torino 2006 gives us a chance to be part of a team and to build the Games together. We do believe that the Torch designed by our subsidiary company Pininfarina Extra, managed by my brother Paolo, will distinguish itself from the ones of the past for its artistic and developmental completeness and will express the supremacy of the Italian design in the world as well as the universal values promoted by the Olympic Movement”.

The styling concept of the design is a modern reinterpretation of the traditional wooden torch in which it is the metal itself to ideally catch fire and burn. Therefore the flame wraps the body of the Torch rather than coming out from a hole on the top, as in the past editions. To develop this concept a dynamic and innovative shape has been created and a new and exclusive combustor system has been set up to assure at the same time stability of the flame, resistance to extinction and visibility.

The Olympic Torch designed by Pininfarina is a technologically advanced instrument and it is been developed to meet certain fundamental technical requirements: it mustn't be relighted, it mustn’t be extinguishable even in adverse weather conditions such as rain, snow and wind up to 120 km/h, the exposed flame must have a constant and controlled height and it must have an autonomy of about 15 minutes.
 

What is more, the Torch (height: 765mm; diameter: 108mm; weight:1850 grams) must work either at sea level or at 5000 metres level. Last but not least, the flame must be a yellowy-orange colour so as to be visible on TV during the day and night; the smoke must be non-toxic and odourless. In order to optimise functionality and performance of the Torch in different environmental conditions the Pininfarina project team, made of twenty five people coming from all sectors of activities of the Group, has carried out a huge test program.

As for the materials used, the shape shell has been made of aluminium, the internal equipment in steel, copper and technopolymer, while the surface finishing provides an embossing to make the grip easier and a special painting resistant to high temperatures. The Torch is stoked with a hydrocarbon mixture (propylene-butane) contained in a spray-type canister in standard aluminium. The internal combustor system is composed by a double combustor chamber that gives stability to the flame. In order to assure the invariability of the flame in different temperature and pressure conditions an internal vaporizer with a gas flow pressure regulator has been also set up. A bulk-head, in which a fixture system of the shells has been integrated, thermically isolates the combustor chamber, the canister area and the handle.

Pininfarina has worked side by side with Toroc Communication and Image management team throughout the design and production phases: so the Torch is consistent with the positioning and vision of Torino 2006 and compatible with the principal elements of communication for the Winter Olympic Games: the logo, the concept of enthusiasm and the graphic format.