Olympics: Ticket prices turn-off

By Terry Maddaford and Reuters

About a quarter of the New Zealanders who pre-booked tickets for next year's Sydney Olympics have asked for their money back, but ticketing spokesman Malcolm Beattie said the drop-out figure was lower than expected.

New Zealanders are not the only ones. An opinion poll released yesterday revealed that more than half of Australians would like to book seats for the Olympics, but most have been put off by the high cost of tickets.

"Like most people, it is fair to say we are a bit disappointed at the high price being asked for the opening ceremony," said Beattie whose company, Sportsworld International, is the New Zealand Olympic Association-appointed ticket agency here.

"Once those and other prices were revealed by the organising committee we had expected up to 30 per cent to ask for their $500 deposits back.

"But the 25 per cent who have taken their names off the pre-registration list is in line with a past Games."

While tickets are being included as part of a three or six-day flight-accommodation-tickets package, tickets can be bought in conjunction with a confirmed air ticket alone.

"We realise many people will want to stay privately," Beattie said.

"Provided they buy an air ticket [at around $1000] they will then have the right to select the Games tickets they want."

A three-night package, including tickets to four different events selected by the selling agent, will cost about $2295 for two to three-star accommodation rising to $5395 for five event tickets and three-star accommodation.

"Our early projection was around 7000 to 10,000 New Zealanders would go to Sydney. We still consider that figure about right," Beattie said.

"It promises to be one of the biggest exoduses by New Zealanders to a sporting event.

"There is, not surprisingly, far more interest in Sydney than Atlanta."

While the high price of tickets for the opening ceremony ($1729) has led to resistance on both sides of the Tasman, they, with track and field, swimming, basketball and hockey, remain among the most popular following an analysis of the first 1000 applications received.

Tickets for other events go as low as $24 for the preliminary competition in equestrian's three-day event and include, as examples, $56-$93 for boxing preliminaries or $56 for a morning session at track and field rising to $130 for the afternoon-evening session.

But paying for a ticket does not mean getting one.

"Anyone booking a ticket will get immediate confirmation," said Beattie, "but they won't get it until they are in Sydney.

"We will not be given the tickets - under lock and key in Sydney for security reasons including forgery - until four weeks before the opening ceremony.

"They will then be held by us for collection at either the purchaser's hotel or from one of the centres we will set up in Sydney."

Meanwhile, the AC Nielsen poll in the Sydney Morning Herald said 54 per cent of those surveyed would like to go to the Olympics.

But of those, 69 per cent thought the tickets were too expensive.

The poll also showed that richer Australians were far more likely to apply for Olympic tickets.

Nielsen researcher John Stirton said that the findings suggested 2.3 million Australians would still apply for tickets.

The organising committee, Socog, is hoping to sell at least five million tickets in Australia.

Stirton said what was surprising was the large number of people, 58 per cent, who thought they had a good or very good chance of getting the tickets they want.

"While the system is perfectly fair, I think a lot of people don't have a chance of getting seats they want," Stirton said.

"There's going to be a high number missing out."

Socog, which has already reported brisk overseas ticket sales, put its first tickets on sale in Australia 10 days ago. Australians have until July 16 to return their ticket applications.