Press Release
Three Shetlanders to participate in Delhi handover ceremony
Three Shetlanders have been selected to participate at the Handover Ceremony in Delhi, which will be the first public statement to the world that Glasgow will become the next Host City, inviting the Commonwealth to Glasgow in four years time. The three candidates are Kathryn Spence, Heather Gordon and James Watt
The Closing Ceremony, which the Handover Ceremony is a part of, is the event that concludes the Commonwealth Games. It has a celebratory and festival feel in contrast to the more formal Opening Ceremony. It is where the Host City has the chance to leave, through the media, a lasting image of their Games.
It is the opportunity for athletes, volunteers, organisers and audiences to celebrate the success of the event, as everyone unites for one last time. The Ceremony takes place in the main stadium on the last day of the sports competition on Thursday 14th October 2010 and starts at approximately 7pm local time (1.30pm GMT).
The Creative Concept behind the content of the performance will show the traditional aspects that the world will associate with Scotland, as well as a modern and urban feel to represent Glasgow as the Host City. The 348 members of the cast are from the whole of Scotland and are from all backgrounds.
The performance, which will involve a mass choreographed dance routine, will take place in the spectacular Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and will host a capacity crowd of 60,000 for the Closing Ceremony. It will be beamed live across the Commonwealth to an estimated audience of 1 billion people.
Glasgow 2014 aims to use the Delhi 2010 Handover Ceremony as a catalyst for engaging communities across Scotland. We will be establishing a network of people who will be motivated by the life changing experience of being involved in the Delhi 2010 Flag Handover and will become ambassadors for Glasgow and the Games over the next four years.
Glasgow 2014 Chief Executive, John Scot, said:
“I am delighted that Heather Gordon, Kathryn Spence and James Watt from Shetland are training to be part of the 348-strong cast to perform in Delhi, inviting the rest of the world to the Commonwealth Games in Scotland in 2014.
“I look forward to seeing how the rehearsals progress when they officially start in September. This is a significant moment in Scottish History and I am sure everybody involved will do Scotland proud.”
Mark Fisher from Unspun said:
“By recruiting a cast of dancers and athletes from across Scotland, we are confident that this will be an outstanding event, which will capture both the spirit of Scotland and Glasgow’s unique personality. Unspun is extremely excited to be working with Glasgow 2014 to deliver this amazing event.”
Bill Manson, SIC Spokesman for Education, Children and Young People and Chairman of the Shetland Selection Panel for this project said:
“I am very pleased that three young Shetlanders will be participating in the Delhi Handover project. This will be an exciting and challenging opportunity that will provide a once in a lifetime experience. I am confident that our candidates will represent Shetland and Scotland well and will bring back knowledge and stories that can be shared locally”.