Delhi Common Wealth Games 2010 Baton showcases power of sport to bridge societies

Delhi Common Wealth Games 2010 Baton showcases power of sport to bridge societies

Date: 

Fri, 25 Jun 2010

NEW DELHI, 25 June 2010: There are a hundred days to go for the start of the XIX Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi. What a lovely day it promises to be, with us assembling at the Wagah Border to receive the Queen’s Baton 2010 Delhi from Pakistan after travelling to 69 nations across the Commonwealth over 240 days.

I am particularly excited that we are witnessing the power of sport to be the bridge between societies. Our colleagues in the Pakistan Olympic Association have always offered us great support – helping us in November 2003 to win the bid to host the Games and standing by us through thick and thin, seeing themselves as co-hosts. I am confident therefore that Indo-Pakistan sport will remain an important connect between the peoples of the two great nations.

I am delighted that the baton has completed a remarkable journey over 170,000 kilometres on the international sector from the time it was launched in Buckingham Palace on 29 October 2009 by Queen Elizabeth II in the presence of President Smt. Pratibha Patil. It showcases the capability of the Organising Committee to plan events in great detail and flawlessly execute intricate plans.

The baton has passed through the hands of numerous Heads of State and leaders, ace athletes and common folk. It has been to iconic locations, been to parks that speak out for conservation of flora and fauna in keeping with our resolve to host the first Green Games, been to mountains and desert. It has been exposed to a variety of modes of transport and has encapsuled the diversity of the Commonwealth.

But more importantly, it has demonstrated the remarkable power of sport to unite the Commonwealth since it speaks a universal language. It is a powerful tool that can strengthen social ties and networks, and promotes ideals of peace, fraternity, solidarity, non-violence, tolerance and justice – all that independent India has stood for and championed actively.

Yes, the baton has been a wonderful harbinger for the glorious city that Delhi is and for the universal message of sport. It has also acted as an ambassador for the XIX Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi, inviting the athletes from far off lands to come here for the celebrations of the XIX Commonwealth Games. And the roadshows of the Commonwealth Business Club of India held in a number of cities along the way have helped develop possibilities of increased trade ties between India and many Commonwealth nations.

Back home in India, as it covers 20,000 kilometres over the next 100 days, the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi will be a wonderful opportunity for us to instill a greater sense of national pride in ourselves and to promote Olympic sport. We will be able to showcase our cultural diversity, our lifestyle, our democracy, our secularism and everything else that makes up the strong structure of India.

I thank Hero Honda for being the Presenting Partner for the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi. And the Indian Armed Forces, through the Services Sports Control Board, for all the support it is extending to the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi. Without such support, we would not have been able to mount the operation on such a grand scale.

I must also thank the Governments of each State and Union Territory for being an integral part of this massive project that will touch the lives of millions of people. I am sure that the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 can and will be the launching pad for the creation of a greater sense of sports consciousness in the country.  I have no doubt that the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi will be an exciting event and generate passion for Olympic sport in India.

On this milestone day, with just 100 days to go for the curtain to go up on the biggest sporting spectacle in India, the Organising Committee Commonwealth Games 2010 renews it commitment to hosting not just a successful Games but also a grand and memorable one, something that you – and all of Delhi and India – will be proud of. Yes, we know we can do it. We will.