How the Olympic cauldron became its own spectacle

"At the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, the iconic cauldron of the Games is putting on a daily show just like its athletes. This year, for the first time ever, there are two cauldrons lit simultaneously at different locations. Inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's geometric drawings, both cauldrons expand and contract, respond to music, and emit their own light-and one will put on hourly performances for viewers throughout the Games."

""In the last editions of the games, more and more of the main focus has been on who is going to light the cauldron, its design, and what it means," says Marco Balich, the creative lead for the Winter Olympics opening ceremony who designed this year's cauldrons. "To make a long story short, I think over the years you see the history of the cauldron goes from very simple ones to [beautiful statements].""

Two cauldrons will be lit simultaneously at different locations during the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Both cauldrons are inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's geometric drawings and will expand and contract, respond to music, and emit their own light. One cauldron will present hourly performances for spectators throughout the Games. The Olympic flame tradition dates back at least a century and the torch relay began in 1936 in Berlin. Early cauldrons were simple bowl-shaped vessels; designers began experimenting more around 1968, including the first woman-made cauldron in Mexico City shaped like a giant circular chalice. Cauldrons have shifted from static symbols to dynamic design statements.

Read at Fast Company