Ticket Demand Is Fierce for 2002 Winter Olympics

Olympic fans have requested 769,701 of the 793,000 tickets set aside for Americans at Salt Lake’s 2002 Winter Games.

Officials say ticket sales have been brisk since the Salt Lake Organizing Committee began taking orders Oct. 10, and that figure skating and speedskating competitions are nearly sold out.

The organizing committee will add 6,000 seats at a 46,000-seat stadium to meet demand for the opening ceremony.

Despite an $885-per-seat price tag, more people want to attend the opening ceremony Feb. 8 than can fit into the University of Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Demand for other events has left the organizing committee expecting it can fill only 63% of all requests in 44,000 initial ticket orders. Applicants will be notified next month which orders they will get.

Fans who ordered ticket packages with three days of events have a much better chance to get what they want. The Olympic Experience Packages get priority over individual ticket orders.

The initial orders brought in $76 million of SLOC’s goal of $87 million in domestic ticket sales, but SLOC will have to return some of the money.

John Bennion, SLOC’s managing director of games services, said ticket revenue probably will drop to $60 million after refunds are issued.