Queen Elizabeth To Miss Commonwealth Games Amid Health Rumors, Other Royals To Stand In For Her

Queen Elizabeth will not attend the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham scheduled to run from July 28 to Aug. 8 due to concerns over her ability to travel with her episodic mobility issues. Prince Charles will instead represent her.

The international multi-sport event is held every four years and draws athletes from different Commonwealth nations. Prince Charles and Camilla will represent the Queen on the first day of the event. Other Royal Family members are also expected to participate in the events throughout during Birmingham 2022.

Buckingham Palace has confirmed the attendance of Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, Kate Middleton and Prince William, Prince Edward and Sophie — the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Princess Anne and Prince Richard and Birgitte — the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester. They will visit the sporting venues, join in a range of fixtures, and meet athletes, volunteers and support staff helping at the event. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are expected to attend on Aug. 2.

The Queen has been suffering from a series of discomforts and she has pulled out of several occasions--the Epsom Derby, the Platinum Jubilee thanksgiving service as well as the Royal Ascot this year.

Queen Elizabeth is the patron of the Commonwealth Games Federation and her absence is likely to result in a significant blow to the event's participants and organizers. The Queen is expected to stay at Balmoral Castle in Scotland during the time of the 11-day long competition. She remains too fragile to have the long journey to the event.

In October 2021, she wrote and placed a secret message in a baton during the Queen's Baton Relay event. The note was revealed at the launch of the games on Friday. The Palace shared a behind-the-scene clip of her signing the message through the Royal Family's official Instagram page. "The Queen signing her message to the Commonwealth, which will be read at the Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham next year. Today, 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," it was captioned.

Meanwhile, the 96-year-old Queen is set to stay for 10 weeks at Craigowan Lodge. She arrived in the Highlands on Thursday. She has reportedly invited Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to Balmoral this summer with their children in an attempt to mend relationship with the Sussexes.

A Balmoral insider confirmed, "staff have been told to expect the full list of royals including Harry, Meghan and their children Archie and Lilibet. They are preparing for the Sussexes." Another source added, "Balmoral is the perfect place for them to spend a little bit of quality time with the Queen. They barely had 15 minutes with her at the jubilee."