Commonwealth Games ‘smart’ baton to travel to Cyprus

A ‘smart’ baton designed to be used in the Queen’s Baton relay for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games will travel to Cyprus and the rest of the Commonwealth in October, reports said.

The Queen will place a message to the Commonwealth inside the baton on October 7 in London. It will then be carried to Cyprus and on to Malta.

The design for the latest baton, which will leave Buckingham Palace on October 7, has gone hi-tech.

The baton is enhanced with cutting-edge technology including an illuminated heart monitor, atmospheric sensor ‘lungs’, a 360-degree camera for ‘eyes’ and a digital ‘brain’.

Its lungs are atmospheric sensors that use laser technology to analyse the environmental conditions wherever it is in the world, while its brain will record and transmit imagery and digital information.

The relay, which will see the baton set off on a 144,000-km journey over 294 days and borne by 7,500 bearers, is a long-held tradition in the run-up to the sporting tournament.

Cast in copper, aluminum, and brass, the baton also features a platinum strand in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee next year.

The copper tones will develop a blue-green patina during exposure on the journey to illustrate how it has evolved after being passed from bearer to bearer.

Other destinations among the 72 nations and territories include all 19 African Commonwealth countries, Pakistan, India, Australia, the Caribbean, Canada, and the Falklands Islands, and Seychelles on Christmas Eve and the Maldives on New Year’s Day.

The relay will end in July at the Birmingham 2022 opening ceremony when the baton is returned to Queen.