Melbourne 2006
The Queen’s Baton Relay commenced from Buckingham Palace, London
on 14 March 2005. The baton travelled internationally through 70
Commonwealth Nations – more than 180,000 km in one year and one
day. At the time, this made the Melbourne 2006 Queen’s Baton Relay
the world’s longest, most inclusive relay. The baton arrived in
Australia on 24 January 2006 and for the following 50 days visited
more than 500 Australian communities and was carried more than
21,500 km by 3,500 batonbearers. The relay concluded during the
Games Opening Ceremony on 15 March 2006 where the baton was
presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by the final
batonbearer: John Landy, the Governor of Victoria, Olympian and
former athletics World Recorder Holder for the 1500m and 1 mile.
H.M. the Queen took her message from the baton and read it aloud,
officially declaring the games open.
The Queen’s Baton
The design and technological features of the baton reflected the
relay’s aim to showcase the diversity of the Commonwealth and unite
its communities in celebration of the games. The elegant, curved
form of the baton took its inspiration from the physical form of
athletes arching forward as they strive for success. The 71 larger
lights on the front of the baton indicated the 71 nations of the
Commonwealth that the baton visited. These progressively lit up as
the baton arrived in each Commonwealth Nation, symbolising the
gathering of the nations at the four-yearly festival of sport and
culture.
The gold and magnesium used in the baton held special
significance to the people of the State of Victoria, of which
Melbourne is the capital. The gold tip reflected Melbourne’s
elegance and grandeur and the important role the metal had played
in the city’s history and prosperity. Melbourne thrived during
Victoria’s 1850s gold rush, which drew many people from diverse
nations to the city to seek their success; not unlike the athletes
that went to Melbourne for the games.
Magnesium, often referred to as the ‘metal of the future’, was
used in the front panel of the baton. Australia was one of the
world’s largest producers of magnesium and the metal had special
significance to Australia’s prosperity and economic future. The
green colour used on the back of the baton reflected Melbourne’s
park surrounds and Victoria’s place as ‘The Garden State.’
The baton was 900 mm high and 80 mm wide at its widest point. It
weighed 1.5kg.
The baton’s technological features included:
• Her Majesty’s message was enclosed in a memory chip;
• 200 light emitting diodes (LEDs) performed a sequence of exciting
visual effects whilst being carried by batonbearers and when held
in the baton stand during community celebrations;
• Global Positioning System (GPS) technology which could pinpoint
the exact location of the baton on the games website indicating it
on an online map of the world which zoomed in to the actual
location;
• Video camera which transmitted video footage of key relay moments
to the games website.