After an exciting first day of events and celebrations in Glasgow, host city for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi will journey through the central belt today, joining in St Andrew’s Day celebrations in Paisley, visiting The Glasgow School of Sport before heading east to the unique Falkirk Wheel. It will travel on to Edinburgh with a visit to the Indian Consulate where Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond and Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will meet the Baton with Indian Consul General, Mr. Anil Kumar Anand and former Commonwealth Games hammer thrower Shirley Webb.

First Minister Alex Salmond said: “It is an honour to welcome the Queen’s Baton Relay to Scotland as it makes its impressive journey to every Commonwealth capital around the world. With less than a year to go until the 2010 Games, I am looking forward to supporting our Scottish athletes in Delhi and continuing to build on Scotland’s existing relationships and ever growing links with India. As we prepare for hosting the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the Scottish Government will continue to seize every opportunity to ensure that the event is a success and will support business, tourism and infrastructure across Scotland.”

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “The Queen’s Baton Relay is one of the great traditions of the Commonwealth Games and a wonderful way to celebrate this world-class competition. It provides a focus for the Games in Delhi in 2010 and reminds us of the hard work and dedication of Team Scotland as they prepare to compete in the Games. I am sure that they will be a credit to Scotland and will set the bar high for Glasgow in 2014. The Scottish Government wants all of Scotland to benefit from hosting the Commonwealth Games. That’s why we have recently launched a £23.5 million legacy plan to ensure we capitalise on the economic, social and cultural advantages of 2014 and to encourage Scots of all ages to lead healthier, physically active lives.”

After a relay from Edinburgh Castle taking in the sights down the Royal Mile, the Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi will conclude its Scottish visit at a business function hosted by Clydesdale Bank one of Team Scotland’s commercial partners.

The Queen’s Baton Relay is the traditional curtain raiser to every Commonwealth Games and starts its journey from Buckingham Palace, where Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II places her ‘message to the athletes’ into the Baton. The Queen’s Baton Relay 2010 Delhi started on 29 October and will traverse the length and breadth of the Commonwealth for 240 days visiting all 70 nations and territories, before embarking upon a 100 day national tour of India. The relay will conclude at the Opening Ceremony on 3 October 2010, when the message will be retrieved and read out by the Queen to officially open the Games.

Scotland is the eighth leg of the Relay’s marathon journey and a number of organisations and partners of Commonwealth Games Scotland have come together to host an outstanding range of events and celebrations turning the spotlight on Scotland’s participation in the Delhi Games next year.

Commonwealth Games Scotland Chairman, Michael Cavanagh said: “The visit of the Queens Baton Relay to Scotland brings the Games a step closer still. We are delighted about the level of enthusiasm that the arrival of the Queens Baton is generating and we look forward to a second day of events involving our athletes, school children, business and community groups across central Scotland.”