Queen Elizabeth signs her message to the Commonwealth

Queen Elizabeth on Thursday signed her message to the Commonwealth, which will be read at the Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham next year. 

The message was placed inside The Queen’s Baton before it began its journey to Birmingham via 72 Commonwealth territories and nations, connecting communities over 90,000 miles, said a statement issued on the monarch's social media accounts.

The Queen is the  head of the Commonwealth, as well as Patron of the Commonwealth Games Federation. She was accompanied by The Earl of Wessex, who is Vice Patron.  At the closing ceremony of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, he said, “Every four years these Games bring the spirit of our Commonwealth alive... So I call sportsmen and women from all countries and territories of the Commonwealth to come together in four years’ time in Birmingham, England."