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Let the Games begin: Stage set for Baton Relay
Published on Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 08:43, Updated on Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 13:42 in 
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London: The curtain-raiser to the 19th Commonwealth Games will take place in London on Thursday. The Queen of England will launch the Baton Relay and with it will being the official countdown to the Games. This relay to Delhi will be the longest in the games' history. President Pratibha Patil will attend the commencement ceremony at Buckingham palace.
Several celebrated sporting icons will be the first to carry the baton before it sets off on its marathon journey around the world. Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra will be the first one to hold the baton. Others include former Indian skipper Kapil Dev, tennis star Sania Mirza, Olympic bronze winner Vijendra Kumar, weightlifter Karnam Malleshwari and squash champion, Misha Grewal Soni.
Sporting heroes from the british side will include Olympic champion Lord Sebastian Coe and cricketer Monty Panesar.
"It's a fantastic feeling and it's an honour," said Dev.
The mood is jubilent and excited and even Organising Committee Chairman Suresh Kalmadi and Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) President Michael Fennell set aside their 'issues' and were all smiles ahead of the grand spectacle.
"The baton and the baton journey is symbolic in many ways. It enables so many people to be part of it. This has an international sector and a domestic sector. So even in India this will go to every part and not just Delhi, so this is significant," said Fennell.
This is the longest Baton Relay so far. It's 1,90,000 kms in 340 days," said Kalmadi.
Once the Queen's Baton Relay is launched from Buckingham palace on Thursday morning, there is no looking back. The commencement ceremony will be a grand spectacle, but once the festivities are over, and the baton starts its marathon journey, the spotlight will shift to the games and to India. Eleven months to go, lots to be done and from now on, the whole world will be watching.
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Hosting the C'Wealth Games is going to be a historic landmark on our progress as a sporting nation. Hosting the
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Suresh Kalmadi must be a bit relieved now....
The baton relay has started with participation of some
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