One builder, 46-year-old Sylvain Bouchard, is wheelchair-bound
Two friends in western France have built a 52-foot high replica of the Eiffel Tower from recycled wood, which they hope to display along the path of the Summer 2024 Olympic torch relay and on Olympic sites.
Frederic Malmezac, a 38-year-old carpenter, paired up with 46-year-old Sylvain Bouchard to build the model, using wood that would otherwise have been thrown away.
"The project was to build a wooden Eiffel Tower replica using as much recycled material as possible ... to show that with material due to be thrown away, we can build great things," Malmezac told Reuters on Monday, Feb. 19.
MEDALS FOR THE 2024 PARIS OLYMPICS ARE MADE FROM EIFFEL TOWER PIECES
Malmezac, who, like wheelchair-bound Bouchard, has disabilities, said the project was also an effort to show what great things people with disabilities can achieve.
Two French friends built an Eiffel Tower replica out of wood that would have been thrown out. (REUTERS/Sebastien Masson)
The pair used about 825 pieces of wood and around 5,400 screws, Malmezac said, starting their project in September 2023.
They are hoping to soon get authorization to display their mini-Eiffel Tower near cities where the Olympic torch should pass through during the torch relay.
Bouchard, who was unemployed before the project, said it allowed him to learn "concrete" skills in carpentry. He said the Eiffel Tower is an "immeasurable symbol" of France.
