ATHENS, Aug 17 (AFP) - Olympic organisers boasted Tuesday that they had surpassed the ticket sales target set before the Games began.
Marton Simitsek, Athens Organising Committee CEO, said sales had exceeded those of the 1988 Seoul Olympics and 1992 Barcelona Games. He said over 3.21 million tickets had been sold.
The sales had earned the organisers 183 million euros.
But the International Olympic Committee and television broadcasters are concerned by the number of empty seats in many of the stadiums - creating the image that there is a lack of public interest.
Simitsek said the vacant seats were caused by people failing to turn up or taking a break during the competition.
"That is something we can't control. We can't sell a place twice," said Simitsek. "People come and go. Nearer the finals more people will arrive."
On Sunday IOC officials, worried by the television images being flashed around the world of athletes competing in near-empty stadiums, told games organisers to give tickets away if necessary.
But the Greek organisers firmly rejected the idea.
"We will not be giving away tickets," said Michalis Zacharatos, spokesman for the organisers. "There will be no discounted tickets sold. This is a policy which is fair to those million people that have bought tickets so far."
The Greek government said it would not purchase unsold tickets to fill the Olympic stadia.
"The government does not intend to buy tickets," Greek government spokesman Theodoros Roussopoulos told a press conference Tuesday.
"I don't think that the positive or negative aspects of the Games are measured only by the number of empty seats in the stadia," he added.