Azernews.Az

By Amina Nazarli

The impressive opening ceremony of the inaugural European Games on June 12, which astonished all of Europe with its Azerbaijani culture-themed production, was a spectacular and memorable kickoff to a momentous sporting event.

68,000 people in Baku’s Olympic stadium along with millions around the world tuning in watched the opening ceremony of the long-awaited Baku 2015.

Perhaps, not many expected the fledgling country to create such a mesmerizing show on such a large scale.

After witnessing the extravagant production, however, thousands flocked to box offices and ticket kiosks to experience the same feelings again, while those who could not get to the opening wanted to offset the regret by attending the closing ceremony.

As of now, all of the tickets for the closing ceremony scheduled for June 28, which stood at 10, 20, 50 and 100 manats are sold out days before the show, which will bring to a close 17 days of sporting excellence.

“Three days after the opening ceremony, a total of 38,500 tickets were sold,” said Simon Clegg, Baku 2015’s chief operating officer.

13,500 tickets were sold on June 15 alone, he noted. Thus, all 48,000 tickets for the closing ceremony are sold out.

Although the Baku Olympic Stadium holds 68,000 people, the remaining 20,000 seats are designated for athletes, media, and various officials.

However, the capital’s residents and tourists are showing interest not only to the opening and closings ceremonies, but also in the competitions themselves.

Of the 19 sporting events held on June 15, all of the seven sporting venues were near full capacity. “In many competitions, 84 percent of seats were occupied. On six competitions seats were occupied by 100 percent,” Clegg said.

Earlier, the Baku 2015 European Games Organizing Committee reported that, in total, over 420,000 tickets for the Games have been sold.

Tickets for Baku 2015 can be purchased directly from one of 11 conveniently located ticket outlets around Baku, including Park Bulvar, 28 Mall, and Metro Park Baku, or online at www.baku2015.com/tickets.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

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