Extra tickets for Olympic events
About two weeks before the opening ceremony for the Athens Olympics, organizers Athens 2004 announced yesterday that extra tickets are available for the opening and closing ceremonies and for track-and-field events at the main Olympic Stadium. The organizers said that these are not returned tickets but extra ones made available after contractors finished installing the seats in the stadium. Apparently, the number of seats was 538 more than originally estimated. The 538 tickets for the opening ceremony include 49 priced at 100 euros each, 209 for 350 euros, 178 costing 750 euros and 102 950-euro tickets. The 538 tickets for the closing ceremony are similarly divided but are priced at 50, 100, 500 and 750 euros each. There are also 538 tickets available for each day of the track-and-field events at prices ranging from 10-25 euros for morning sessions, when qualifying events will take place, and 40-90 euros for evening events. The extra tickets will be available from 9 a.m. on Monday at several Alpha Bank branches, online at www.athens2004.com/tickets, at Athens 2004 headquarters (Iolkou and Filikis Etaireias streets, Nea Ionia) and at ticket booths found outside all sports venues, on the corner of Stadiou and Korai streets in Athens, at Maroussi central square as well as the central squares of the four cities that will host soccer qualifiers (Thessaloniki, Iraklion, Patras, Volos). Only 1.95 million of a total of 5.3 million tickets had been sold by the end of June, according to official figures. Organizers have appealed to Greeks to buy the remaining tickets and said they were confident the stadiums would be filled at the last minute. More than 24,000 tickets were sold in just 48 hours this week, according to officials.
