Carlo Ratti unveils duo of torches for Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games

Italian architect Carlo Ratti has revealed Essential, a pair of deliberately pared-back iridescent torches that will carry the Olympic and Paralympic flame at next year's Milano Cortina Winter Games.

Essential is a design collaboration between Ratti's studio Carlo Ratti Associati, energy company Eni and chemicals company Versalis, with engineering by Cavagna Group.

Characterised by sleek cylindrical bodies, the lightweight torches were unveiled yesterday in simultaneous ceremonies held at Milan's Triennale Milano museum and the Italian Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka in Japan.

The torches will be used to carry the Olympic and Paralympic flames ahead of the Milano Cortina winter games that will take place across northern Italy in February 2026.

Made in Italy, each object weighs around one kilogram – excluding the fuel canister – and is composed of recycled materials including an aluminium and brass alloy.

While the Olympic torch features a bluey-green colour informed by Italy's "ever-changing landscapes", the Paralympic edition was designed with a dark amber hue that symbolises "the strength of athletes and the power of their courage to reshape the world," according to Milano Cortina.

Each torch was designed to be reused and refilled up to 10 times to reduce the number of disposable torches required for both the Olympic and Paralympic relays, according to the designers.

"Sustainability starts when we minimise the use of materials," said Ratti. "And so the idea of the torch was to put the flame at the centre and minimise everything else."

Each torch is powered by bio-LPG, a renewable alternative to traditional liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) made from raw biomaterials including animal fats and cooking oil.

The designers said that Essential marks the first time that the Olympic torch has been fabricated with an open design at the top, revealing how the flame is generated and positioning it as the torch's focal point.

"We understood from the very start that what's important isn't the torch, but the flame," explained Ratti. "So we started to think how we could avoid designing the torch in a way, and emphasise the power and beauty of the flame instead."

Physical vapour deposition (PVD) technology was used to give the torches their distinctive iridescent finish – a material process used to create thin films or coatings.

Four Italian athletes presented the torches at yesterday's ceremonies. Former cross-country skier Stefania Belmondo and fencer Bebe Vio unveiled Essential in Milan, while runner Martina Caironi and figure skater Carolina Kostner revealed the torches in Osaka.

In 2021, Milano Cortina announced its angular Olympic and Paralympic logo for the 2026 winter games after a public vote. The logo is emblazoned on each of the Essential torches, combined with the games' respective symbols.

Elsewhere at Osaka's ongoing 2025 expo, Ratti created a giant copper staircase for the event's France Pavilion. The architect and engineer is the curator of next month's Venice Architecture Biennale.

The photography and video are courtesy of Milano Cortina.

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