Organizers of the 2014 Commonwealth Games have "revealed demand for Glasgow 2014 is the highest of any Commonwealth Games in history," according to Martyn McLaughlin of the SCOTSMAN. The organizers hailed the "record" and "unprecedented" sale of "92% of tickets available to the public for next summer’s sporting spectacle." Spectators have "snapped up 854,614 tickets" for the 11-day event so far. Officials said that figure "exceeded their expectations, and was the equivalent of 'shaving a second'" off the 100m record. In a sign of the Games' "appeal at home, more than half of the tickets (57%) were bought by Scots, according to preliminary research, with 22% purchased by those in the Greater Glasgow area." Of the tickets sold, 40% went to U.K. residents (SCOTSMAN, 11/4). In Glasgow, Fraser Wilson reported Glasgow 2014 CEO David Grevemberg "hailed the drive for tickets as 'phenomenal.'" With "more than 364,000 ticket requests, athletics is by far the most in-demand event at next summer's Games." But 11 of the 17 events have "sold out to the public already with cycling, swimming and gymnastics also proving popular" (DAILY RECORD, 11/4). The BBC's Jane Lewis reported "the remaining 76,000 tickets go on sale to the general public on Tuesday." The tickets cover "limited sessions and price categories in badminton, boxing, lawn bowls, rugby sevens, weightlifting and para-sport powerlifting and squash." Tickets to Commonwealth nations are from an "additional pot, sold through the various Commonwealth Games around the world" (BBC, 11/4).
