Renfrewshire Welcomes Queen’s Baton Relay

More than 100 young people from Renfrewshire got the chance to carry the Queen’s Baton for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi when it visited Paisley on St Andrew’s Day.

The Queen’s Baton 2010 Delhi was welcomed to Renfrewshire as part of its tour of the UK ahead of the Games in March.

Renfrewshire’s Provost Celia Lawson officially welcomed the Queen’s Baton and its delegates, before handing it over to local 800m runner and Commonwealth Games hopeful Claire Gibson to officially start a special relay race around the historic Paisley Abbey.

Claire was followed by fellow local athlete Callum Hawkins who also carried the baton on a lap of the town centre, as well as 45 secondary school students who are training as sports coaches with the Renfrewshire School of Sport Education.

Provost Celia Lawson said: “The Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 is a very prestigious event and it was an honour to welcome it to Renfrewshire. It was particularly special for the young people who got the opportunity the carry the baton and I am delighted we were able to get so many youngsters involved.

“We have a proud sporting past and a very strong future in athletes like Claire, Callum and William. Our Renfrewshire School of Sport Education is also contributing to our goal of creating an Active Renfrewshire by helping young people to share their enthusiasm for sport through coaching. For these reasons Renfrewshire was a perfect choice for the Queen’s Baton Relay to visit and we were all delighted to be given the opportunity to show off our town and our sporting talent.”

Local dance group Right 2 Dance added to the proceedings with a modern Scottish dance performance in front of Paisley Town Hall before the relay.

The Queen’s Baton Relay then continued to the Lagoon Leisure Centre where 60 local primary pupils also got the chance to carry the baton in an indoor mini-relay event.

www.renfrewshire.gov.uk