British design studio Barber Osgerby have won the Design of the Year 2012 for their design of the London 2012 Olympic Torch. The overall winner was chosen from 89 entries to claim the winning title. The award, designed by Swarovski, was presented by Anya Hindmarch at the awards ceremony held at the Design Museum in London on 24 April.
The London 2012 Olympic Torch is not only a symbol of the Olympic Games but it also addresses a demanding design brief. The aluminium-made torch will be carried over 8,000 miles and is perforated with 8,000 circular holes, each representing a bearer who will run with the torch. Aside from being decorative, the holes also act to reduce the weight of the torch and prevent heat from the flame being conducted to the bearer’s hand. 
Seven category awards were also presented at the ceremony:
- The Architecture Award went to the London 2012 Velodrome.
- The Fashion Award went to Issey Miyake 132.5 collection.
- The Digital Award went to Kinect by Microsoft.
- The Transport Award went to the redesign of the Emergency Ambulance.
- The Graphic Award went to Nokia Pure, a font design that can adjust to all languages.
- The Furniture Category was won by recent RCA graduate Kihyun Kim for his balsa wood 1.3 Chair.
