It took 85 drafts for design company Nendo to perfect what would become the centrepiece of the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony, but boy was it worth the effort. The cauldron looked like a perfect white sphere when it was first unveiled at the opening ceremony. It then bloomed like a magnificent flower just as Team Japan’s tennis star Naomi Osaka took the Olympic torch.
The lighting of the cauldron became an instantaneous highlight of the Tokyo Olympic Games – and now you can see the cauldron for yourself in Ariake, where it will be stationed for the remainder of the Summer Games.
More specifically, you’ll find the pure while cauldron, now lit with the Olympic flame, at the Yume no Ohashi bridge (also known as the Olympic Promenade) connecting Ariake and Odaiba. Though there are barricades preventing people from getting too close, you’ll still be able to admire the details put into this splendid sculpture.
Inspired by this year’s Olympic opening ceremony philosophy – ‘All gather under the sun, all are equal, and all receive energy’ – the cauldron was made to symbolise not only the sun itself but also all living things that gain vitality from it.
Because this is the first Olympic Cauldron to use hydrogen instead of propane, the flame would have been colourless if not for the added sulphur, which gives the flame as well as the cauldron’s glittering silver interior their golden sheen.
Due to the current Covid-19 situation, organisers are urging people not to crowd around the exhibit and to maintain social distancing at all times. On site, there are pre-recorded announcements and volunteers with signs reminding visitors to wear their masks, keep their distance from others, and be cautious of heatstroke.
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