2022 Commonwealth Games Baton arrives Nigeria Oct 16

The 2022 Commonwealth Games baton formally known as Birmingham 2022 Queen’s Baton Relay is set to arrive in Nigeria on October 16, 2021.

The baton recently began its 90,000-mile (145,000 kilometer) journey around the world when Queen Elizabeth II presided over the launch of the baton relay for next year’s Commonwealth Games in the central England city of Birmingham.

The 95-year-old monarch handed the baton for what are often referred to as the “friendly games” to four-time Paralympic gold medallist Kadeena Cox, who is fresh from winning two events in Tokyo.

Cox took the baton on a brief journey around the nearby Queen Victoria Memorial in central London before handing it to another competitor.

The Commonwealth Games, formerly known as the Empire Games, are held every four years and involve mostly countries and territories with former colonial ties to Britain, including Australia, Canada, India and South Africa.

Flying out from Birmingham Airport, the baton will first stop on the east Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus on Oct. 9 and a week later it arrives in Africa, with Nigeria as the first point of call.

The relay, which will involve 7,500 baton bearers, will go through 72 nations and territories of the Commonwealth over 294 days and will return to Birmingham for the opening ceremony on July 28.