Mumbai/New Delhi, The Youth Baton Relay of the third Commonwealth Youth Games will be flagged off from the North Campus of the Delhi University Aug 1 and will tour 199 cities in nine states before arriving in Pune on the inaugural day of day of the event Oct 12.

The relay will cover 8000 kms and will be carried by 6000 slected sportsperson. A team consisting of 80 crew and 26 vehicles will escort the baton from Delhi to Pune.

All the 71 Commonwealth nations with over 1,300 athletes aged below 18 and 350 officials will participate in nine disciplines at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports City, Balewadi, in Pune. The event will conclude Oct 18.

"The Commonwealth Youth Games will help us host a successful Commonwealth Games in 2010. A successful Commonwealth Games will help us bid for the Olympics Games," Indian Olympic Association (IOA) chairman Suresh Kalmadi told reporters in New Delhi, Wednesday.

Kalmadi, who is also the organising chairman of the Commonwealth Youth Games as well as the 2010 Commonwealth Games, said about the New Delhi Games that everything was going on schedule.

"All the venues will be ready by December 2009 so that test events can start well before the main event."

Tata Motors will be the official vehicle provider of the Commonwealth Youth Games Baton Relay, which is part of the 3rd Commonwealth Youth Games Pune 2008.

23 Tata vehicles, including Sumo Grande, Safari, Winger, Magic and others will accompany the baton relay entourage, the company said in a statement.

One of the vehicles provided will be a Special Green Vehicle (SFC 407) which will continuously collect refuse from the relay, process it into manure that will be used for planting saplings on the relay route.

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