Culture and Sport Minister, John Griffiths AM, will today welcome the Queen’s Baton to Wales as it lands on the British mainland for the first time at Cardiff Airport.
The Minister will be on the tarmac, along with Helen Phillips, Chair of the Commonwealth Games Council of Wales and Anne Ellis, President of the Commonwealth Games Council of Wales to receive the Queen’s Baton from Chris Jenkins Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Games Council of Wales who will accompany the Baton on the flight from Belfast.
The Minister will receive the 2014 Baton and will exchange it with the Baton from the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, held in Cardiff, which will be brought to the airport by its custodian Emma Lile, Curator of Music, Sports and Customs at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales National History Museum, St Fagans.
The 2014 Baton will then continue its journey to Glasgow in time for the Commonwealth Games in July. On route, it will spend seven days in Wales visiting many communities and landmarks such as the St David’s peninsula, and the summit of Snowdon. It will be carried by 177 baton bearers, from sport stars to celebrities and inspirational members of the community.
The Minister said:
“I am pleased to welcome the Queen’s Baton to Wales, and indeed to the British mainland. It is fitting that the Baton is arriving in Cardiff, home of the first Games to stage a Queen’s Baton Relay, before it continues on its journey around Wales. The Commonwealth Games is an opportunity for Wales to compete as a nation in our own right so it is a very important event for us.
“We want the nation to get behind Team Wales and the Baton Relay is the ideal way to do this. Not only does the relay put Wales in the global spotlight; showcasing our rich culture and heritage and passion for sport but it allows us to take the Commonwealth Games out to our communities. I look forward to meeting up with the Baton again later on its journey through Wales and seeing the excitement for the Games building and support for the team gathering along the way.”
The exchange of Batons at Cardiff Airport will represent a symbolic moment. The 1958 Cardiff Games were the first to stage the Queen’s Baton Relay, intended to symbolise peace and harmony through sports participation. The arrival of the 2014 Baton will therefore represent a symbolic homecoming and the exchange will reflect the contribution of Wales to the Baton’s history.
