By Lisa Flueckiger, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The first batch of tickets for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro have been distributed by lot among the many applicants and results were be published today (June 9th) at 10AM. Of all applications, 65 percent were successful according to the Olympic Organizing Committee.
Of the total of 4.5 million tickets, 1.6 million were distributed in this first round of ticketing. In 121 of the 694 sports session, tickets already sold out. These include all tickets for the triathlon, the marathon swimming and synchronized swimming events, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies.
Football (soccer) was the sport that distributed most tickets to the fans, with the final at the Maracanã and games in São Paulo already selling out. In athletics, the 100m run and the 4x100m were the most popular, while eleven sessions of the beach volleyball competition also sold out. Another 157 sessions in various sports partly sold out.
Around 65 percent of all applications received tickets, although only 14.2 percent were allocated all the tickets requested and 51.3 percent receiving some of the sessions they wanted to attend. However, 34.5 percent of all demands had to be declined completely.
Brazilians and foreigners resident in Brazil who applied for tickets, will receive an e-mail on Tuesday, June 9th. Results of the draw will be available online as well.
John Smith, an American expatriate living in Rio since 2009 said, “honestly I’m not sure if I get selected in this first round, if that means I need to buy all the tickets to the six events I bid for, which will be about R$4,300, or if I can still pick and choose from them. If I make the draw then I’ll find out soon enough.”
The homepage of the Olympic Games states that “In the event that you decide to cancel tickets, your entire order will be cancelled. It is not possible to keep tickets for some sessions but not for others. It’s all or nothing.”
Fans who applied for tickets in this first draw, but didn’t get selected, can try again from July 1, 2015 onward. The results of the second draw will then be announced in August. Those who were not successful in the first phase will have priority in the second.
After the second draw in August, direct online sales will open in October 2015 and shortly before the Games box office sales will open in May 2016. Sessions that sold-out may become available again in the event of withdrawals or non-payment of tickets.