From Matangi Tonga Magazine Vol. 17, no. 1, May 2002.

Queen Elizabeth Jubilee Baton Relay literally touched the hearts of dozens of Tongan school children during the two days that they carried it through the villages of the island of Tongatapu attracting thousands of excited spectators. The pulsating light that flows in rhythm with the heartbeat of each carrier was a fascination for every carrier of the baton.

The Tongan part of the relay started at the grounds of the Royal Palace at the Nuku‘alofa waterfront on the morning of May 8 and ended at the Teufaiva Outdoor Stadium in the afternoon of May 9.

The Baton left Buckingham Palace in London, on March 11, and it has been to the Americas, the Caribbean, and Africa before coming to Oceania and Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Tonga. The baton will travel to Asia and onward to Europe and finally arrive on July 25 in the City of Manchester Stadium, United Kingdom, for the start of the XVII Commonwealth Games. The final runner will hand the Baton to the Queen, who will release the message from the Baton, and read it to the Commonwealth Nations and the rest of the world.