East London designers in Stratford to unveil Olympic Torch

These are the first pictures of the Olympic Torch that will officially begin the London 2012 Games.

The creation, by east London designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby, will form the centrepiece of the Olympic Torch Relay where 8000 inspirational people nominated by local communities will carry the flame on a 70 day journey throughout the UK.

Made from aluminum alloy and held in place by a cast top piece and base, the main body of the Torch is held together by 8000 conjoined holes to represent the story of each Torchbearer.

Chair of the London Olympic organsing committee, Sebastian Coe said: “Members of the public right across the UK are busy nominating inspiring people to be Torchbearers and I am thrilled we have a beautifully designed, engineered, and crafted torch for them to carry.”

However, plans by EDF Energy, an Olympic sponsor and sustainabilty partner, to make a low-carbon torch flame have fallen through due to safety concerns.

Shaun McCarthy, Chair of the Commission for a Sustainable London, said: “The carbon contribution of this intiative may have been relatively small, but the power of the message across the globe would have been highly significant.”

While the Commission acknowledged the effort that EDF Energy contributed to the project, Mr McCarthy added: “The promise of a low-carbon torch was made in 2007 so the excuse of ‘we ran out of time’ is not acceptable.”

The Relay will begin in Land’s End on May 19 2012 and it will end at the Opening Ceremony in the Olympic Stadium on July 27 2012.

Nominate Olympic Torchbearers for Newham at www.london2012/olympictorchrelay.