The International Olympic Committee has launched an investigation into the possible sale of London 2012 tickets on the black market, pledging “strongest sanctions” for any perpetrators.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Saturday, June 16, announced the launch of the official investigation into the possible illegal sale of tickets for the 2012 Games.The probe was initiated after the recent publication by The Sunday Times newspaper, which revealed that sporting officials from 54 countries were eager to cash-in on breaking the Olympic tickets sale rules.The journalists, introducing themselves as resellers from the Middle East, came into contact with members of the nation Olympic committees of a number of countries and met full desire to cooperate on many occasions. The prices for the passes to the top events of this summer’s Games were offered at prices 10 times higher than their face value.“The IOC takes these allegations very seriously and has immediately taken the first steps to investigate,” the statement on the IOC’s official website said. “Should any irregularities be proven, the organization will deal with those involved in an appropriate manner. The NOCs are autonomous organizations, but if any of the cases are confirmed the IOC will not hesitate to impose the strongest sanctions.”Over a million London 2012 tickets are being sold through the national Olympic committees of the participating countries. The process is regulated by a set of strict rules, according to which the tickets can only be distributed in the country for which they are intended and sold exclusively at face value through authorized ticket resellers.This May, a similar scandal occurred in Ukraine as the secretary general of the country’s Olympic Committee, Vladimir Gerashchenko, lost his job after being tricked into selling a hundred high-price tickets by BBC journalists. The 2012 Summer Olympic Games will be held in British capital, London, between July 27 and August 12.