Queen’s Baton Relay arrives Jan 3
The Queen’s Baton Relay to signal the upcoming 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow will finally arrive in the country on January 3 for a three-day tour.
Advertisement
A Commonwealth delegation from Sierra Leone, with the baton, will be welcomed at the Kotoka International Airport by the sector Minister, Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, on that day.
The President, John Dramani Mahama, will be the first recipient of the baton at the Flagstaff House on Saturday, January 4, at a ceremony.
The baton is expected to be paraded through some principal streets of Accra by some dignitaries, heads of corporate institutions, venerable sports personalities and sports administrators, after which it will head to the Volta Region, where Togbui Afede XIV is expected to receive it on January 5 and welcome the delegation.
The delegation with the baton departs Accra on January 6 to Nigeria to continue their tour.
At a brief press briefing last Monday in Accra to announce the itinerary ahead of the coming of the baton, the sector minister noted that his outfit was committed to supporting all the 36 sporting associations in the country.
According to him, his tenure had so far witnessed the most awards for lesser-known sports in the annals of this country.
The baton is being carried around all Commonwealth nations by organisers of the Commonwealth Games.
The Queen's Relay began its 190,000 km journey on October 9 last year over 288 days around the Commonwealth before the games on July 23, 2014.
The relay was introduced at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales. Up until now, and including the 1994 Games, the relay only went through England and the host nation.
The Queen's Baton Relay, similar to the Olympic Torch Relay, is a relay around the world held prior to the Commonwealth Games. The baton carries a message from the Head of the Commonwealth, currently Queen Elizabeth II. The relay traditionally begins at Buckingham Palace in London as part of the city's Commonwealth Day festivities.
At the opening ceremony, the final relay runner hands the baton back to the Queen or her representative, who reads the message aloud to officially open the games.