Baton hits the home straight
IT has seen our most famous cities and landmarks, been held by celebrities, sports stars and local legends, and now it is on the home stretch.
When the Queen’s Baton reaches its final destination on the Gold Coast it will have travelled a staggering 230,000 kilometres in what is the longest relay in Commonwealth Games history.
The baton began its journey at London’s Buckingham Palace more than a year ago and has travelled through 70 nations and territories in an epic 388-day journey.
After arriving in Brisbane on Christmas Eve, it has now spent 85 days travelling around Australia, including visiting Sydney Harbour, Uluru and diving the Great Barrier Reef.
Currently the baton is making its way through the Whitsunday Islands and Mackay before it makes its journey to the central Queensland mining towns of Moranbah and Clermont.
It will then make its way east to Rockhampton before travelling down the Queensland coastline to the Gold Coast.
Unlike the Olympic torch which carries a flame, the Queen’s Baton carries a message from Queen Elizabeth II that will be announced at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony.
The Queen’s Baton will arrive on the Gold Coast on Sunday, April 1 and travel through a number of our city’s suburbs before finishing at the opening ceremony on April 4.