King’s Baton Relay begins for Commonwealth Games Glasgow 2026 | Sports-other news

For the first time in the history of the CWG, all 74 nations received their own batons, customized according to their visions and imagination. All batons will be united at the opening ceremony in Glasgow on 23 July 2026.

The India Stick was designed by renowned visual artist Aqib Wani, who also designed the India jersey for the Paris 2024 Olympics. Explaining his inspiration for the design, Aqib said: “The stick has three sides, so I decided to design each of them distinctly. One side is inspired by the flowers of India. The second side depicts the peacock, the national bird and the elephant.”

“The third aspect belongs to great Indian literature and depicts the scripts used by Indians,” he added.

In the past, Wani has also designed the jerseys of the Indian men’s cricket team and describes his love for the sport as one of the reasons behind his work.

“I grew up watching sports, which is why whenever I get the opportunity to work on designs related to sporting events, I grab it with both hands,” he joked.

The baton was unveiled by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, accompanied by Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha and British High Commissioner Lindy Cameron.

The 2026 Commonwealth Games are scheduled to be held from July 23 to August 2 in the Scottish city. This will be the fourth time Scotland has hosted the event, following editions in Edinburgh (1970 and 1986) and Glasgow (2014).

The baton will remain on public display in Delhi from November 12 to 14 at DLF Avenue Mall, before traveling to Ahmedabad on November 14 for the next leg of the relay.