How much for an Olympic torch?

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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

What do you do with a used Olympic torch?

Sell it on eBay of course!

For the runners chosen to bear the Olympic flame, the torch they carry is meant to be a family keepsake.

Just hours after the relay began, the souvenirs were already for sale and some runners listed their torch even before they had carried the flame, offering to post them to the highest bidder immediately after their job was over.

Others have offered their official uniforms as well.

While charities are thought to be benefitting from some of the sales, other runners say they simply need the money to pay their own bills.

Torch carriers were offered the chance to buy their torches at a cut-rate price and some won their places through sponsors and were offered them for free.

If the torches are kept as keepsakes, where do you display them? It's been pointed out that they're a metre long and look awkward on the mantelpiece.

A runner's Dad has a point too. The 80-something year old told his daughter she could create much more of a legacy funding a charity with her torch proceeds, than by keeping a shiny piece of bling that 8,000 other people had.

The final words come from Olympic organisers, who say the majority of runners want to keep their torch, but ultimately it's their property and they hope the torches find good homes.