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London 2012 surprise hits include archery and rhythmic gymnastics, as well as predicted high demand events Archery and rhythmic gymnastics were among the surprise hits as applications for Olympic tickets surged before the deadline. Such was the last-minute demand that the deadline was extended by an hour after the website on which the public could register for tickets experienced problems from about 10.30pm as the clock ticked down to the 11.59pm cut-off point. A spokesman said: “Some people experienced temporary delay in accessing the Olympic ticketing site following a surge of applications around 10.30pm this evening. This surge has now evened out and the system is working normally. Applications were still being processed during this period.” Members of the public were met by a holding message but after a lengthy waiting period it timed out, leaving some users with a new page that read simply: “Sorry, we cannot process your request. Please try again later.” Despite a 42-day sales period, London 2012 organisers reported a surge of interest over the bank holiday weekend. Applications for oversubscribed tickets will now go into a ballot. Olympic organisers were buoyed by strong demand for some less high-profile sports alongside the predicted strong appeal of the opening and closing ceremonies, the velodrome, the pool and athletics track. Group applications from ballet classes and gymnastics clubs have helped fuel demand for the rhythmic gymnastics sessions at Wembley Arena. The popularity of water polo among expat communities combined with relatively cheap tickets, and the appeal of seeing archery across the hallowed turf at Lord’s, the home of cricket, have attracted applications for those sports. Other events now expected to require a ballot for tickets include the canoe slalom at the impressive new Broxbourne whitewater course – which became the first new Olympic venue to open to the public last week – and the badminton finals. The popularity of the latter is being put down to recent British successes and its familiarity to casual players in leisure centres and village halls. “We have seen really strong demand for the ceremonies, athletics, swimming, rowing and track cycling, which is what we expected,” said Paul Deighton, chief executive of the London 2012 organising committee. “But there has also been heavy demand for finals for events with particular fan bases. Things like canoe slalom, archery and badminton have been high. Rhythmic gymnastics is very popular and I think a lot of gymnastics and ballet clubs have said: ‘Let’s take the class and go and see world-class performers as we might not get another chance.’” Deighton also defended the ticket application process, which has come in for criticism because prospective purchasers don’t know exactly where they will be sitting or what their chances of success are. Organisers are increasingly confident they will hit their goal of bringing in 80% of their total ticket revenue target of £500m by the end of the public ballot process. But they have also conceded that the target may not be met until they have conducted further rounds of sales, which are likely to continue until the end of the year and involve going back to those who have failed to secure tickets for certain events and offering them alternatives. Organisers have boldly pledged that the 8.8m Olympic tickets, 6.6m of which are on sale to the general public, will eventually sell out. But they also concede that some are likely to be on sale right up until the day of the event. Sports such as volleyball, basketball, hockey and handball – which have lots of sessions at venues with relatively high capacities – are understood to be unlikely to sell out in this first ticketing phase. Weightlifting, meanwhile, appears to have proved less popular than some of the other sports taking place at the cavernous ExCel centre in London’s docklands. Football will present the biggest challenge, with more than 1m tickets to be sold to the men’s and women’s competitions just weeks after Euro 2012, and in the midst of an ongoing row over whether Britain will be able to field a team comprising players from all the home nations. Payment will be taken between 10 May and 10 June for successful ticket applications, but applicants will not know which tickets they have until as late as 24 June. There has also been some criticism of the prices, which range from £20 to £2,012. Organisers argue that 90% of tickets are below £100 and point to special “pay your age” prices for children and reduced prices for senior citizens in some sessions. “We looked at several alternatives and determined that this was the fairest and most open way,” said Deighton. “I don’t think people have gone in for massive over-subscription, I think people are too sensible to box themselves into a corner where they will end up with masses of tickets they don’t want and can’t afford.” Those who end up with unwanted tickets that they can’t use or can’t afford will be able to resell them through a Locog ticket exchange site, but that is not expected to be operational until next year. The £500m revenue target, a quarter of Locog’s overall budget, also includes Paralympic tickets that will go on sale later this year, sales to sponsors and overseas sales. Olympic Games 2012 Olympics 2012: Archery Olympics 2012: Athletics Olympics 2012: Cycling Olympics 2012: Gymnastics Olympics 2012: Fencing Olympics 2012: Water polo Olympics 2012: Weightlifting Olympics 2012: Canoeing Olympics 2012: Badminton Olympic Stadium London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Locog) Owen Gibson guardian.co.uk