Baton relay for games will take in famous West sites
THE Queen’s Baton Relay ahead of the Commonwealth Games will take in some of the West’s most famous sights.
Sunrise at Stonehenge and a stop at the Roman Baths in Bath are among the venues the baton will pass on its whistlestop tour of the West in July.
The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games yesterday unveiled the route for the West and elsewhere in England.
Travelling via land, air and sea, more than 180 communities in England will experience the Queen’s Baton on a route covering 2,500 miles.
From bustling cities and historic market towns, to rolling countryside and rugged coastline, the baton will head as far south as Cornwall and as far north as Northumberland.
On Monday, July 4, the places it will visit include St Austell, Plymouth, Exeter, Portland & Weymouth, Poole and Bournemouth.
On the following day, after an early start at Stonehenge, it will call on Devizes, Bath, Bristol, Easter Compton, Hereford, Gloucester and Cheltenham.
The Queen’s Relay will begin in the South West at the Eden Project in Cornwall, the most southerly location for the entire England journey.
Birmingham 2022 is hosting the 16th official Queen’s Baton Relay – a journey which brings together and celebrates communities across the Commonwealth, during the buildup to the games.
In England, the Queen’s Baton Relay will provide the opportunity for communities to experience the buzz and excitement for Birmingham 2022.
The relay is set to travel the length and breadth of England for a total of 29 days, before culminating at the opening ceremony for Birmingham on July 28.
Starting on Thursday June 2, the baton will spend four days in London, coinciding with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Weekend, celebrating the Queen’s 70th year as monarch and Head of the Commonwealth.
The baton will then resume the international journey, visiting the Falkland Islands, Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man, before touring home nations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
It returns to England on Monday July 4 to start a 25-day tour.
Thousands of batonbearers, each with inspiring backgrounds and stories, will have the honour of carrying the baton during the journey.
Between 40 and 130 people will carry the baton each day, and the relay will reach hundreds of villages, towns and cities during its tour.
Ian Reid, chief executive of Birmingham 2022, said: “Whilst the baton has been travelling across the Commonwealth, we have worked closely with local authorities in England to devise a route that engages with hundreds of communities, passing sport venues, historic sites, local schools and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.”