Chinese push and shove for last chance Games tickets

CHINA: Unwashed, unfed and lacking sleep, tens of thousands of Chinese shouted, pushed and shoved for their last chance at Olympic tickets on Friday, threatening to break through barricades.

Ticket hopefuls and security officials screamed back and forth as tempers flared in the intense heat and smog just two weeks before the Beijing Games begin.

“There have been some public safety problems here ... We have asked people to keep order,” a police spokesman told reporters, estimating the crowd at more than 40,000.

“We are doing everything we can to keep the situation calm.” Even before dawn broke, some people tried to charge the gate, prompting a swift response from officials, witnesses said. Police were also removing people from the queue for being too pushy.

Prospective buyers have been limited to two tickets at the same competition, but officials have promised the last tranche holds tickets for events at every venue, if not every event.

“I’ve been here for 48 hours. I think everyone should be tired,” said one man surnamed Wang, from the southwestern province of Sichuan, who spent the night sleeping on a straw mat.

Like many, he wanted tickets for an event in the National Stadium, dubbed the Bird’s Nest, or the National Aquatics Centre, known as the Water Cube, the two showpiece stadiums that have changed Beijing’s landscape.

Those who managed to secure tickets were elated.

One man surnamed Lei, from the eastern province of Anhui, was rewarded for his two-day wait in line with tickets to the final of the 110 m hurdles.

“I just feel so lucky to be able to see Liu Xiang run at the Olympics,” said Lei, 24, referring to the Chinese hero and defending champion.

Long queues had already formed by Wednesday afternoon, a day after Olympic organisers announced the final tranche of 820,000 tickets would go on sale.

By Thursday, 10,000 people formed a line snaking hundreds of metres away from the booth that opened at 9 a.m. local time (0100) on Friday, many hunkering down inside tents or under umbrellas to shelter from the 35 degree Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) heat.

Dozens of ambulances stood by to come to the aid of those in line and the hundreds of police and paramilitary People’s Armed Police forces were also feeling the strain. One policeman rushed to an ambulance where he threw up, before brushing off the concern of his colleagues and rushing back to duty.

Beijing, Friday, Reuters