IOC to probe Olympic ticket claims (From Daily Echo)
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IOC to probe Olympic ticket claims
11:30pm Saturday 16th June 2012 in National News © Press Association 2013
A newspaper has alleged tickets for the London 2012 Olympic Games have been sold illegally
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is facing a London 2012 ticket scandal after allegations surfaced that Olympic officials and agents controlling tickets for 54 countries breached regulations on ticket sales.
The IOC held an emergency meeting of its ruling executive board via conference call after undercover investigations by the Sunday Times newspaper.
The allegations are now to be investigated by the IOC's ethics commission, a senior IOC source has confirmed to Press Association Sport.
The IOC will also consider a complete shake-up of how Olympic tickets are distributed among member countries.
The Sunday Times, posing as envoys of a Middle Eastern ticket tout, say they found 27 officials and agents representing 54 countries who were willing to breach rules on selling tickets.
One, from Serbia, offered 1,500 tickets for £80,000 in cash, said the newspaper, while they allege China's official ticket agency agreed to sell the best seats in the stadiums for up to £6,000 each. Spyros Capralos, the president of Greece's Olympic committee, is also alleged to have breached regulations, says the Sunday Times.
The IOC confirmed it was investigating the allegations.
An IOC statement read: "The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has moved quickly to deal with allegations that some National Olympic Committees (NOC) and Authorised Ticket Resellers (ATR) have broken rules relating to the sale of Olympic tickets. After claims that several NOCs and ATRs were reportedly willing to break the rules by offering to buy or sell tickets outside their territory, sell tickets at inflated prices, or sell tickets to unauthorised resellers, the IOC has ordered an immediate inquiry and referred the allegations to its independent ethics commission.
"On being informed of the allegations, the IOC immediately convened an extraordinary meeting of its executive board and determined a number of actions - the convening of the ethics commission and asking for any evidence of wrongdoing to be provided to the commission without delay.
"The IOC takes these allegations very seriously and has immediately taken the first steps to investigate. Should any irregularities be proven, the organisation will deal with those involved in an appropriate manner. The NOCs are autonomous organisations, but if any of the cases are confirmed the IOC will not hesitate to impose the strongest sanctions. The IOC has also determined that it will take on board any recommendations coming out of the inquiry to improve the way that tickets are allocated and sold internationally in the future."
