Source: www.trinidadexpress.com

FOUR years ago, the family of Trinidad and Tobago swimmer George Bovell III desperately struggled to get tickets to see him compete at the Beijing Olympic Games. And it was only after protracted efforts they were able to secure four tickets at the last minute.

Yesterday, officials of the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC) announced that they were seeking to make the ticket-acquiring process easier for interested Trinidad and Tobago residents by appointing an official ticket agent to distribute its allocation from the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Trinidad and Tobago have been given an allocation of just 800 tickets, which are mainly for athletic events. It was also revealed that just two local print media will be accredited, while competing athletes have the opportunity to purchase two tickets for their events.

When the application process for London 2012 Olympic tickets closed recently, early indications showed that more than 20 million tickets were applied for worldwide, with around 1.8 million people submitting requests for tickets.

And because of the high demand, the TTOC said it aims to make the process as transparent as possible.

"We felt it was important to do that because we have had a number of requests from members of the public who are concerned about where they can get tickets," TTOC general secretary Brian Lewis said yesterday during a media conference at Olympic House, 121 Abercromby Street, Port of Spain.

The Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee announced American sports and leisure company Cartan Tours as its official authorised ticket re-sellers for the 2012 Olympics. The TTOC was represented by Lewis and president Larry Romany, who were joined by Cartan officials Grey Harney, director international business, and Donald Williams, vice-president sales and marketing.

Cartan is one of the oldest travel companies in North America, having been in existence since 1899. Between 1980 and 2006, Cartan was official ticket agent for the US Olympic Committee, but now represents the Olympic committees of 40 countries, including 37 in the Caribbean and North and Central America.

Williams disclosed that Cartan will offer official tickets, travel packages, and hospitality services to Trinidad and Tobago residents.

The average ticket price for London Olympics Games events is US$100, while an opening ceremony ticket goes for US$3,700.

Cartan Tours packages will start at US$1,900 and vary depending on number of days in London and the quality of hotel required.

Tickets can be bought directly on-line at cartanglobal.com or a form can be down-loaded from the same website and sent in by mail. Navigation to Cartan can also be made via the TTOC website (www.ttoc.org).