2010 Ticket Information

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by ravman

how would selling ~ 60 thousand tickets for BC Place lead to less revenue than GM Place ( ~ 18,000)...the demand will be insane that people would be willing to pay $100 to sit on the fourth floor to watch the game ( if Canada is playing)

Well it also has to do with logistics.....the mens gold medal game ends (assuming no overtime) 3 hours before the closing ceremony starts.

VANOC has already publicly said that they would rather work with smaller venues that will be a guaranteed success rather than working with larger, riskier capacities.

[vanlaw]

Apparenlty there are only 4000-5000 tickets available to the Canadian public for the gold medal game, so the chance is much less than 13%

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by vanlaw

Apparenlty there are only 4000-5000 tickets available to the Canadian public for the gold medal game, so the chance is much less than 13%

1 in 25.....still beats the odds of winning the 6/49 or Super 7.

[DKaz]

I have a feeling I didn't request my tickets properly. I don't remember giving my Visa number.

[misterchill]

I put in a couple requests for the longest-distance speed skating. Since there wasn't a mention of that I hope I get my wish. :-)

[ckkelley]

Apparently there's plenty of tickets left for the 100 metre snowshoe event. j/k.

It seems there wasn't much interest in that one.

[Hong Kongese]

Olympic speed skating tickets will sell out

By Matthew Hoekstra - Richmond Review

Published: November 14, 2008 5:00 PM

Expectations that demand would outstrip supply for Olympic events at the Richmond oval have proven correct.

More people have requested seats at long track speed skating events than there are tickets available, the Vancouver Organizing Committee for 2010 announced Thursday.

Those events, along with all figure skating, short track speed skating, higher rounds of men’s ice hockey and opening and closing ceremonies will all go to a lottery.

“Speed skating is traditionally a very popular event in the Olympics, and made more so by the fact that Canada is obviously a powerhouse in the sport these days, and is expected to do so very well in the Olympics,” said city spokesperson Ted Townsend.

“We think we have a little advantage in having what is the premiere venue for the Games.”

Undoubtedly some ticket buyers may only have a passing interest in the sport, but are drawn by the venue.

“Anybody who’s been in the building or seen it has just raved about it, so I think it’s going to be a unique experience unto itself during the Games,” said Townsend.

There’s proven interest in the oval, from the 8,000 people who signed a section of roof, to a school program announced last week that now has a wait-list.

That program gives school children a chance to skate on the oval. The first phase of that program had 6,600 spots. After a few hours of registration, all the spots on the first phase had been filled.

“The school program and some of the other 2010 programs we have recognize that demand is probably going to exceed supply during the Games, so we want to create as many fun and exciting opportunities as we can for people to come into the oval... or take part in other Olympic activities...” said Townsend.

The deadline for the first request period of tickets was Nov. 7. Total requests for tickets amounted to $345 million—almost five times the value of tickets available. In comparison, at Salt Lake City in 2002, initial demand was valued at just $75 million.

Tickets not yet snapped up will be re-released for sale from Dec. 8 to 22 exclusively to Canadian residents who submitted a request during the first period. Any tickets still remaining will go on sale on a first-come, first-served basis in 2009.

Coun. Bill McNulty said he wasn’t surprised by the demand for speed skating tickets.

“I could have predicted that,” he said. “Speed skating is one of those venues where the greatest numbers of medals are to be garnered at any one site, so you would expect the popularity.”

[ravman]

^^^ Yeah... we want to see someone win and Canada can actually sweep the floor... that and short track are very entertaining.... though i like short track more... but only slightly to longtrack

[wrenegade]

Originally Posted by vanlaw

Apparenlty there are only 4000-5000 tickets available to the Canadian public for the gold medal game, so the chance is much less than 13%

You're killing my hopes and dreams here!

[johnjimbc]

Has anyone who put in ticket requests seen any charges on their visas?

I re-read the instructions, and it confirms the suspicion someone had mentioned that if you did get selected, you'd probably have charges on your cards prior to receiving official notification. The rules state they will authorize charges as the tickets are allocated in the lotteries. They state the lottery period is Nov 8 - 23 in their guidelines, but formal notifications start Dec 5.

So, any activity on anyone's account? Or has anyone heard or read anything from other folks? It sounds like the response was overwhelming so it's hard to be optimistic.

Nada here : (.

[sacrifice333]

No charges here yet.

[vanlaw]

Nothing yet

[raggedy13]

Just got an email saying the following...

November 25, 2008

With the Request Period behind us, we are now moving into the Lottery and Ticket Allocation Period. Please take a moment to carefully review the following important information on 1) payment and 2) revised upcoming key dates.

1) PAYMENT

Your Visa card may be charged, without further notification, as early as December 1, 2008. You will be charged no more than the "maximum total value" noted on your account and will only be charged for tickets that you are allocated.

Prior to December 1, please ensure:

You have available credit on your Visa card to cover your allocated tickets
Your financial institution is aware that a charge from "Vancouver 2010 Ticketing" is anticipated and legitimate
Your account information is up to date. Sign in to your account to review or change your existing profile and payment information (if required).
PLEASE NOTE: If your card is declined for any reason, your ticket request will be cancelled without prior notification.

2) KEY DATES

Due to the incredible demand for Olympic Winter Games tickets, we have slightly adjusted our timeline for the rest of Phase 1. Please take note of the new dates below.

December 1...................VANOC will begin charging Visa cards
NEW - December 10........E-mail notification of ticket allocation (no information released prior to this date)
NEW - December 12.......Start of Priority Access Period
December 22................End of Priority Access Period


Thank you for your support of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.


Vancouver 2010 Ticketing Team
The Vancouver 2010 Ticketing Call Centre
Phone: 1-800-TICKETS (1-800-842-5387)
E-mail: [email protected].
TDD/TTY: 604-629-7140 (for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing)

[johnjimbc]

I was just about to post the same thing. Question answered.

It is good they are sending the email reminder. That is why I was thinking about the charge. I figured folks might need to contact their credit card company just to make sure a charge wasn't rejected - or just delayed - for security reasons.

[sacrifice333]

I have not yet received that email.

hmmm.... it's being sent in batches of 30K and we will all supposedly receive the email.

[LeftCoaster]

I just got the email yesterday... gotta clear up some space on the old Vis.

[raggedy13]

Originally Posted by Hong Kongese

Olympic speed skating tickets will sell out

Undoubtedly some ticket buyers may only have a passing interest in the sport, but are drawn by the venue.

The venue is really the main reason I bought speed skating tickets. I mean it would be a great experience regardless of the venue but I just really want a chance to check out the oval!

[mr.x]

^ if you don't get tix, you'll also have the opportunity to buy tickets to the speed skating World Cup in March 2009. i believe it's a $100 all-access pass for four days.

[johnjimbc]

Regardless of what happens with the Olympic tickets, I do think the real deal is to look for the lead-in events this winter. I was able to see the World Figure Skating championships a few years ago, and while the audience was rather full, getting tickets was not a problem. It was amazing to be able to watch so many world-class skaters perform. As interesting as the final 6 skaters were, some of the most interesting skates were in the preliminary sessions (the 24th through 7th slots). In a few cases, you could really tell you were watching young and up-and-coming skaters getting their first moments in the sun . . . and a few were very impressive.

Plus there was just more of a comraderie with the audience members. I remember this one skater had a really respectable performance but stumbled briefly on her very last minor move as she ended her skate. As the audience applauded, she smiled and waved. Then she referenced the spot where she struggled and shrugged in an "I'm sorry about that last move" fashion. The audience just started laughing and then clapped louder. It was just a cool moment, and she was well outside of medal contention.

So, I'd say keep an eye out for those events throughout this season.

[sacrifice333]

no big charge on my visa yet...