Ticket sales slow in U.S. for Athens' Olympics

[PfcHammer]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4723971/

Ticket sales slow in U.S. for Athens' Olympics

Updated: 5:27 p.m. ET April 12, 2004U.S. ticket sales for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens are down about 30 percent and travel packages are down 20 percent compared with the 2000 Games in Sydney, according to Don Williams, head of Cartan Tours, the only agency licensed by the U.S. Olympic Committee to sell Olympic tickets.

Williams speculated that security concerns of American travelers are the biggest reason for the dip, with the sluggish economy and the poor value of the U.S. dollar against the Euro also contributing. “We anticipated that Athens would be a little lighter than Sydney and it is,” Williams said. “We also anticipated that bookings would be a little lighter, and that seems to be the case, too.”

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The Greeks have allocated more than $800 million for security, more than triple the amount spent at the Sydney Games, but a number of U.S. athletes and fans have expressed concerns about their safety, according to Williams and USOC CEO Jim Scherr.

Williams said his company has observed a general sluggishness in sales since tickets became available. He said he did not notice a dip after the Madrid train bombings or any other world event.

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[indepat]

1. A sluggish economy and a much devalued dollar as against

the EURO surely won't help ticket sales: moreover, if what Chalmers Johnson said in his Los Angeles interview on 2/14/04(?) when promoting his book "The Sorrows of Empire" has any validity, Americans might not be among the most welcomed visitors to Greece.

[BrotherBuzz]

2. Some people wonder if the place will be completed...

and ready to open on time. I understand they are way, way behind schedule.

[Shopaholic]

3. Not to mention the fears of terrorist attacks. . .

that alone would probably be enough to convince me not to go if I'd been planning on it in the first place. . :-(

[LibertyorDeath]

4. LOL thanks for the laugh

[rooboy]

5. That's because the entire place is one big construction site.

All other issues are secondary - the whole thing is a DISASTER. The athletic stadium may not be ready on time and they've already made arrangements to abandon the roof over the aquatic center.

[TheDonkey]

6. I visited Athens last summer and not a thing was built

for the olympics yet those damn mascot toys were EVERYWHERE. I don't know why the Greeks waited so long to get started on this project. I'm still excited to watch them in ther original country though.