Only 22.7% of tickets available for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games "have been purchased so far with little more than five months to go" until the opening ceremony, organizers revealed, according to Nick Butler of INSIDE THE GAMES. The figure is "thought to mark the lowest in recent Winter Olympic history at this stage of preparations." Only 4.85% have been sold in South Korea, even though it was forecast that the host nation will account for 70% of the overall total. The remainder sold so far have been bought by authorized ticket resellers for int'l purchase -- "so are not necessarily yet in the hands of clients planning to attend the Games." The IOC raised "significant concerns about ticket sales during the Coordination Commission inspection visit" which closed on Thursday. It is "worried" that South Korean organizers are "not using the right strategies in order to sell tickets and, despite repeated promises, have not done enough to improve their promotional efforts." A total of 1.18 million tickets are available for the Olympics. It is hoped that 90% of this total "will be sold beforehand." Organizers claim to "remain confident" that the start of the second phase of online sales on Tuesday will "help raise interest in the host nation." A spokesperson said, "Koreans are known to be last-minute buyers so we expect to see an increase in sales in the second phase as the Games get closer." A "similar trait" was recorded before Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016, when "initially poor sales were partially offset by a late boost in the final weeks beforehand" (INSIDE THE GAMES, 8/31).
'FULL CONFIDENCE': In Seoul, Baek Byung-yeul reported IOC Coordination Commission Chair Gunilla Lindberg "gave a pass grade on PyeongChang's readiness for next year's Winter Olympics" on Thursday. Lindberg said, "This visit has given me full confidence that PyeongChang is ready to welcome the world next February." But she also "raised a question over PyeongChang's plan for the use of the venues after the Olympics." Lindberg: "The IOC once again requests the final plans be presented as a priority. This is a concern for us. We are expecting the plans to be ready by the end of November. We have pushed not only PyeongChang but local and national governments to come back with plans for the legacy" (KOREA TIMES, 8/31).
