These pressed, anodised aluminium torch stands were made by the Sydney metal stampers, G.A. & L. Harrington, to hold Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic torches. Their rounded bases and split shafts serve to balance the torches, which are curved gently and weighted unevenly. The stands represent the desire of those involved in the relay, as either staff members or torchbearers, to keep and display torches as mementoes of their involvement in the Games. G.A. & L. Harrington made around 1000 stands which retailed for AUD$80 each before and during Olympic and Paralympic competition.

In 1999, SOCOG sought inexpensive stands to display the Olympic and Paralympic torches in an upright position. Two designs were available: a clear plastic stand from China, and a pressed aluminium stand from G.A. & L. Harrington. The Harrington stand, which came in anodised blue or silver, appealed to many at SOCOG but could not compete with the less expensive Chinese version. Nonetheless, G.A. & L. Harrington did manufacture a small quantity for SOCOG staff, and later made more when supplies of the Chinese stands were exhausted.

The Harrington design was simple yet functional; its circular base and tilted shaft balanced the torch in a perfectly vertical position, and the blue and silver finishes complemented the surface of the Olympic and Paralympic torches. The black logos were applied to the bases by a silk-screen printing process or as adhesive labels.

Blue Sky, the Sydney company that designed the Olympic and Paralympic torches, worked briefly with G.A.& L. Harrington to perfect the final prototype. Specifically, it improved the angle of the shaft, and modified the top face of the base from flat to rounded.

The stands were designed in 1999 by Sydney metal-stampers, G.A. & L. Harrington, to hold the Sydney Olympic and Paralympic torches. Blue Sky, which designed the torches, helped to perfect the final prototype.

G.A. & L. Harrington made 1000 torch stands in pressed, anodised aluminium. The black logos were applied to the bases by a silk-screen printing process or as adhesive labels.

These stands were made 1999.

These are non-purchased examples of the Olympic and Paralympic torch stands that retailed for AUD$80 prior to and during competition.

Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, and donated to the Powerhouse Museum after use in the Paralympic Games.

Torch stands (3), Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relays, pressed anodised aluminium, designed and made by G.A. & L. Harrington, Sydney 1999

Three Olympic Torch stands. Each stand has a pressed aluminium base with the Sydney 2000 logo in blue. Fixed vertically into a hole in the middle of the base is a split aluminium tube to hold the base of the torch. Laquer finish.

Three Olympic Torch stands. Each stand has a pressed aluminium base with the Sydney 2000 logo in blue. Fixed vertically into a hole in the middle of the base is a split aluminium tube to hold the base of the torch. Lacquer finish.

Designed: G A & L Harrington Pty Ltd; Sydney

Made: G A & L Harrington Pty Ltd; Sydney; 1999

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