Can I still get gymnastics tickets??

For those of you out of the loop or newly arrived, ticket sales for next year’s Olympics began this summer, with over 300,000 people applying for tickets at the Bank of China or on-line using their credit cards or Bank of China accounts. Starting yesterday, ticket winners are being informed via e-mail, and those without e-mail will receive their notification by phone.

Beijingers represented the largest group of applicants, with 46% of all applicants hailing from the capital. According to BOCOG, the most popular events (after the opening ceremony, for which only 1 out of every 21 applicants won tickets) were basketball, diving, table tennis, football and gymnastics.

Only about 12,000 of the 300,000 applicants in this phase were foreigners – surprisingly low, think we, since this was the chance with the highest probability of getting your desired tickets. No need to fret, however – there will still be plenty of tickets available in the next round, which starts in October. According to the official website:

This phase offers three ways of purchasing tickets:
1. the ticketing website
2. the participating Bank of China Olympic ticketing outlets, and
3. the Olympic Ticketing Call Center.

Ticket orders placed in Phase 2 will be processed on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Check back at this website in a month for more details.

Links and Sources:
Beijing2008.cn: Results of phase I of Olympic ticket sales announced
Beijing2008.cn: Foreigners show interest in buying Olympic tickets
Beijing2008.cn: Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Ticket Information