OLYMPICS - THE GREEK FARCE CONTINUES
The stadiums aren't ready, the transport system isn't ready, there are unlikely to be any seats in the main stadium, and most of the athletes will be doped to the eyeballs, but it seems none of it will matter.
There will be no-one there anyway...
Athens Olympics Count on Last-Minute Ticket Sales to Meet Goals
By Maria Petrakis
June 1 (Bloomberg) -- Athens Olympic organizers have sold about a third of the tickets available for the games, which begin Aug. 13, and are counting on last-minute sales to help them meet revenue goals.
The Athens Organizing Committee sold 1.8 million tickets through April 16, when sales were suspended so seats could be allocated to the media and other pass holders, the organizers said in an e-mailed statement. Sales totaled 137 million euros ($167 million), or 75 percent of targeted ticket revenue.
Organizers will reach their goal of 183 million euros in ticket revenue if they sell 68 percent of the seats available, the statement said. Sydney sold 2.5 million tickets in the three months before the 2000 Olympics, Athens organizers said. Similar results would push sales in Athens to 77 percent of all seats.
Delays in completing Olympic venues and concerns about terrorism at the first summer games since the Sept. 11 attacks on the U.S. have slowed ticket sales in Athens. With 3.75 million tickets left to sell through the end of the games on Aug. 29, Marton Simitsek, executive director of the organizing committee, said Athens is targeting full stadiums for all events.
Forty-two percent of all remaining tickets are for team sports, and sales will improve once the final draws for events such as soccer are known, the organizers said.
The lower cost of the remaining tickets will also spur sales, they said. The tickets still on sale have an average price of 35 euros, with 2.25 million costing 20 euros or less.
There are a limited number of tickets remaining for the more expensive opening and closing ceremonies, the most popular events at any Olympics, organizers said. Prices for those tickets range from 100 euros to 950 euros. Tickets for the semifinals and finals in men's basketball are also limited, they said.
