Luck of the draw for ticket sales of Paris Olympics

Sports fans around the world can take their first steps to acquiring tickets for the 2024 Paris Olympics by entering a draw this week, organisers announced on Monday.

Those wishing to enter the draw have from this Thursday until Jan 31 – with organisers hoping that ticket sales realise 1.2 billion euros (US$1.25 billion), almost a third of the budget of the organising commi ee (Cojo).

“It is not a sprint,” said Paris 2024 chief executive officer Etienne Thobois at the announcement at the Eiffel Tower.

The successful applicants will be allocated 48-hour time slots between Feb 13 and March 15 to purchase their tickets.

Apart from the opening ceremony and the surfing – which is being held in Tahiti – they can select three sessions of any sport, subject to availability, and apply for up to six tickets per session.

The cheapest package for three tickets will be 72 euros with the most expensive priced at 1,150 euros.

However, 20% of sessions involving the most in demand finals (the 100 metres in athletics and basketball) will not be available.

Following that, phase two of the ticketing process will involve applicants entering a draw for single tickets from March till May next year.

Those emerging as ‘winners’ from this draw will be able to apply for tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies.

There will follow a third and final ticket selling phase at the end of 2023.

Organisers said in a statement that “for the first time in Olympic history, all tickets will be sold exclusively on a single, centralised and digital platform which will be open to all fans at the same time”.

Through that platform almost 10 million tickets will be on sale – 3 million of those will be in the first draw. — AFP