Olympic cauldron burns without fire -- it's the French way

Aug. 5 (UPI) -- At the conclusion of the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony, French athletes Marie-José Pérec and Teddy Riner lit the Olympic cauldron, a ring of fire that floated into the night sky on a hot-air balloon in a dazzling bit of showmanship.

The cauldron has since been installed on the Jardin des Tuileries in central Paris, where it rises some 200 feet into the air each night and attracts countless sightseers.

The ring of fire and its enormous balloon have quickly become a symbol of the Games, a temporary landmark hovering between the Louvre Glass Pyramid and the Arc de Triomphe.

The flame, however, is not made of fire at all. It is, according to the Games' organizers, "a meticulous combination of a cloud of mist and beams of light ... with electricity as its sole source of energy."

The 23-foot ring of fire incorporates 40 LED spotlights to illuminate a cloud created by 200 high-pressure misting nozzles, the Paris 2024 organizers explained in a press release.

"With a Flying Cauldron, we wanted to pay tribute to the spirit of daring, creativity, innovation -- and sometimes madness! -- of France, at the heart of the DNA of Paris 2024," said Tony Estanguet, the president of Paris 2024.

The decision to go without fire was a way of reducing fossil fuel use, organizers said. Normally, Olympic cauldrons are kept aflame using natural gas throughout the Games, but Paris 2024 has pledged to halve carbon emissions compared to London 2012 and Rio 2016.

"Light, magical and unifying, [the cauldron] will be a beacon in the night and a sun within reach during the day," said its designer, Mathieu Lehanneur. "The fire that burns in it will be made of light and water, like a cool oasis in the heart of summer."

From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time each day, 10,000 people can get free tickets to approach the cauldron up close. All slots have been booked, according to the ticketing site.

Before reaching the cauldron in Paris, the Olympic torch was lit during a ceremony in Olympia, Greece, in April. It made its way to Athens and then traveled by boat to Marseille, where it commenced an epic relay around France.