Date :
28/05/2014
On 14 June, the Queen’s Baton relay will return to Scotland for a 40-day journey through 400 towns, villages and cities before the Games begin on 23 July.
Will the baton be in your area?
The route
Around 100 people will carry the baton each day, starting in Edinburgh and travelling through all 32 Local Authority areas before arriving in Glasgow City on Sunday 20 July ready for the Opening Ceremony on Wednesday 23 July.
Over 40 days, the baton will pass through 400 communities and be carried by up to 4,000 batonbearers.
You can download a PDF of exactly where the baton will be each day from the Glasgow 2014 website.
What’s happening where you are?
There’ll be a variety of events happening in each Local Authority area to celebrate, involving schools, community groups, sports clubs, celebrities and local businesses.
Contact your Local Authority to find out what’s been organised in your area and to see how you could get involved. You can find a link to your Local Authority website on the Scottish Government website.
What could you do?
The relay is bound to attract local media. The press will be looking for feel-good stories and eye-catching images, so think about how your business could generate both.
Do you know any of the official batonbearers? Are you on the relay route itself? Could you provide refreshments or sanctuary from the weather for batonbearers, their families and supporters?
Many of the batonbearers have been nominated because of their contribution to local sports and community groups. Could you make a donation or sponsor one of them?
Social media
The Commonwealth Games and the Queen’s Baton Relay are running high profile social media campaigns, so if you are organising a games-themed event or supporting the relay in your area, make sure you Tweet about it and include the official hashtags - #Glasgow2014 and #BatonRelay
Let the games begin
Of course, the baton relay is just the start of what will be a huge influx of visitors coming to Scotland for the Commonwealth Games.
Around 1 million spectators, 15,000 volunteers and 2,500 members of the press are expected, along with 6,500 athletes, their officials and families. (Source: Glasgow Major Events)
The first phase of ticket sales generated upwards of 2.3 million ticket requests, 57 percent of which were from Scotland and 40 percent from England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
It’s estimated that the games will reach 1.5 billion people around the world through TV and radio. (Source: The Scotsman).
We’ll be adding more advice and news items in the run up to the Games to help you take full advantage of everything that’s happening!