Baton carriers announced
Around 90 Shetlanders have now been chosen to carry the Queen’s Baton on the Shetland leg of its journey throughout the UK and Commonwealth.
These include retired Anderson High School head teacher George Jamieson and sports coach Mandy Henderson. The baton bearers will take part in the celebrations when it arrives in the islands on 1st July.
Throughout the day the baton will visit Sumburgh, Sandwick, Lerwick, Scalloway, Aith and Brae where school and community events will be held to celebrate the countdown to the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Sports and leisure executive manager Neil Watt said: “When the Queen’s Baton Relay comes to Shetland there will be approximately 90 people from across Shetland who will be carrying it. This will be a very exciting day for all of them and for Shetland as a whole. I am sure they will enjoy the day and I hope that lots of people will make the effort to come out and support them on the 1st July – congratulations and well done to all of them.
“I am also delighted that the Queen’s Baton Relay will be in Shetland during the school term so that children from across the islands will have the opportunity to participate in one of the school and community events happening that day.”
Mark Wylie
It’s fantastic the Queens Baton will visit Shetland, another great honour for Shetland Sport and every successful nominee.
On a more personal note as a baton bearer myself it will be a very proud and emotional day as it will be my last day living in Shetland before moving to Aberdeenshire to take up a new challenge of developing pre school gymnastics in the city. To carry the baton for the queen on my final day before I leave Shetland will be some day indeed!
Mark Wylie
John Tulloch
Why do sportspeople from the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands participate in the Commonwealth Games as competitors while Shetland sportspeople are ‘thrilled to carry the Queen’s baton’?
Why do the Faroese compete in European Football tournaments while Shetlanders are ‘thrilled to carry the Queen’s baton’?
How many of you understand what the island councils’ ‘Our Islands, Our Future’ campaign is about?
How many of you understand what Stuart Hill is on about?
How many of you are even aware that there is a Scottish Parliament petition calling for there to be a local referendum in each of Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles immediately after the Scottish Independence Referendum in September with various options, including island independence to be on the ballot?
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/GettingInvolved/Petitions/islandgroups
Even if you have no interest in Shetland’s future other than sport, you need to forget about carrying batons and sign this petition which takes about a minute.