STEVE CHIOTAKIS: London, of course, is hosting next year’s Summer Olympics. A huge event there will be the 100 meter men’s sprint final. Organizers have already received a million requests for tickets. But those hoping to see the event in person will likely be disappointed.
The BBC’s Rebecca Singer reports.
REBECCA SINGER: It’s all about the opportunity to see Jamaican champion Usain Bolt. But the stadium holds just 80,000 — and only half that number will be made available to the public. The other half has been allocated to sponsors, VIPs, media and international fans.
Gordon Lott is from Lloyds Banking Group — one of the sponsors of London 2012. He says it’s a great event to host their corporate clients, but most tickets will be given to the bank’s customers.
GORDON LOTT: We are already giving our customers the chance to win tickets and we will be continuing to do so right through to 2012.
Demand for tickets across all events has been huge — with 20 million ticket applications in total. Concern is that other high profile events like swimming and track cycling will be similarly oversubscribed. And they take place in even smaller venues.
In London, I’m the BBC’s Rebecca Singer for Marketplace.
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