Bhubaneswar: The Queen’s Baton for the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG) reached Friday the Odisha capital and was received and welcomed by chairman, Odisha Hockey Promotion Council, Dilip Tirkey and officials of Sports and Youth Services Department of the Odisha government and Odisha Olympic Association at the Biju Patnaik Airport. Eminent sportspersons like Anuradha Biswal and Shradhanjali Samantray were also present to welcome the Queen’s Baton. The relay baton will stay in the city Friday night.
The Queen’s Baton accompanied by officials, will tour Puri and Konark where it will be received Saturday by dignitaries and district administration officials before returning here for the symbolic relay at the Kalinga Stadium, where eminent sportspersons of Odisha will participate.
“It is a momentous and historic occasion for us. It is a great honour for Odisha to receive the Queen’s Baton and be part of its journey prior to the commencement of the Commonwealth Games 2022. All arrangements befitting the Queen’s Baton and its relay has been made by the Odisha government’s Sports Department,” said former Olympian and captain of the Indian hockey team, Dilip Tirkey.
The Queen’s Baton Relay is a Commonwealth Games tradition that celebrates, connects and excites communities from across Commonwealth during the build-up to the event. The relay began on October 7, 2021 at Buckingham Palace, where Queen Elizabeth II placed her message to the Commonwealth into the Baton, signifying the start of the 294-day relay to the 72 nations and territories of the Commonwealth.
The 2022 Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton relay will be conducted maintaining all Covid-19 protocols of the state and central government. The baton will leave for Singapore January 16. The Baton will arrive back in England in July 2022. The Games are expected to take place from July 28 to August 8, 2022.