Crystal trophy for the Tour de France

DESIGN – Czech designer Peter Olah was in charge, as the last two years, of design crystal Trophy for Tour de France cycle race 2013.

Olah was inspired for their silhouette by the dynamics and atmosphere of the most prestigious and demanding cycle race.
Each trophy weighs almost 4 kilograms and is more than 60 centimeters tall. The blowing and precise hand-cutting of the 4 trophies took the glassmakers hours. Each piece is created by sharp, precise cutters, which in a rotational shape evoke a crystalline form.

This year the trophy is produced from crystal and a layer of opal glass. The opal layer is ground using wedge-shaped cutters, which intersect. Due to this a design arises with a strict, geometrical decorative two-thirds shape.

By grinding off the opal layer the crystal glass is revealed. The brightness, shine and combination of cutting gives rise to a unique piece of art, concealing tradition and precision, a tribute to craftsmanship and respect for today’s design.

The trophy, produced by Czech glassmakers from Lasvit, merges the traditional technique of glass-blowing and the precision of master cutters.

The designer Peter Olah says “Working on designing the trophy for this fantastic race is an amazing challenge. And because I had the possibility to design it last year, when the design was a huge success, I decided that I would link my thoughts to that, even though this year’s design is an even more a celebration of Czech hand-cut crystal glass and precision with which Czech glassmakers can work with crystal. I am already looking forward to their presentation on Paris’ Champs-Elysees.”