Friday, October 15, 2010

Olympic sailing for £55

Sailing is an expensive sport, we all know that. Just look at how many zillions it costs to win the America's Cup - or indeed find enough goodies to tempt the winner to hold it in your city.

But to see the Olympic 2012 Sailing Final will cost you the punter merely £55 and you can get a view of the preliminaries for just £20!

Actually slightly puzzled by the concept here of final - surely there will be multiple races with points and discards and stuff - this isn't like the 100m. Maybe they mean last race, though that could indeed be the decider for medals.

Rowers will have to have deeper pockets - up to £ 150, but that's what you get hosting them in Eton.

However to put things in context the athletics "super-finals" (they mean the 100m) will be a whopping £750, though that is nothing compared to a ticket for the opening ceremonies of up to £ 2012 (geddit!)

Full list here, so register now as the tickets go on sale in March 2011.

12 comments:

pfb360 said...

I got that same email earlier today! I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully the tickets won't be too much more for this side of the pond!

The schedule for all the competitions is here: http://media.ticketmaster.com/og/en-gb/img/sys/tournament/london2012/olyschedule.pdf

Chris Partridge said...

£150 to watch rowing, when I can get out and do it myself for free?

Tillerman said...

In Olympic sailing (and other major regattas) these days, the last race is only for the top ten sailors on points in the fleet in the previous races, is sailed for double points, and cannot be used as a discard. It's an attempt to make it the race that really decides the medals as opposed to the old days when sometimes the gold medal was already decided before the final race.

You should definitely snap up those tickets!

JP said...

Thanks Tillerman, very helpful explanation.

Must admit on my things-to-do-in-2012 list is most definitely a trip to Weymouth to see some of the races, so I will be registering.

O Docker said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
O Docker said...

Tickets for the opening ceremony seem to vary in price quite a bit, JP.

From £20.12 to £2,012 (there are those funny numbers, again).

Perhaps, for the highest price, they're selling off the right to light the Olympic flame?

That flame, travelling from Beijing, will need to cross water at some point. I wonder if an Olympic sailor will be ferrying it across the channel in their Laser.

Tillerman said...

Not necessarily so O Docker. It is quite possible to travel from continental Europe to Great Britain without ever crossing over any water.

O Docker said...

I can't see them routing the Olympic runner through the chunnel.

Might be a chore getting a Laser across, though, with the flame still lit.

Tillerman said...

Been doing a bit of research with the Google about the Olympic torch in 2012.

a) It will be lit in Greece (not Beijing).

b) There will not be an international relay like last time on account of all those foreigners protested too much last time. So there will be a 70 day relay around Britain only. Yeah baby!

c) The torch will arrive in Britain on 18 May 2012 but I haven't been able to find any information on how or where exactly it will arrive.

d) Kent County Council are campaigning that Dover will be the point of arrival for the torch on British shores. As far as I know the Channel Tunnel goes under Dover and emerges at nearby Folkestone, so they probably are thinking of an arrival by boat. No mention of a Laser though...

O Docker said...

"...There will not be an international relay like last time on account of all those foreigners protested too much last time..."

Hmm...possible blog post - too much politics in sports today?


"...Kent County Council are campaigning that Dover will be the point of arrival for the torch..."

Hmm...possible blog post - too much money in sports today?

JP said...

Good old Kent County Council: what would be better than the torch arriving at the White Cliffs of Dover?

I bet they don't have to give 75 year leases to anyone - maybe just buy a couple of tickets on a cross-channel ferry

Support the KCC!

Tillerman said...

And Vera Lynn singing, "There'll Be Bluebirds Over...." as the torch lands at the white cliffs. Hang in there a couple more years Dame Vera. We're going to need you for a 70th anniversary performance on 18 May 2012. The very thought brings tears to my eyes.