News
Fan helps Olympic Athlete Get Tickets for his Family
March 27, 2012 Nicola  |
British Olympic medal hopeful Dai Greene has received extra tickets for family after supporters purchased tickets via official foreign website.
Dai Greene, current 400m world champion, had voiced his frustration on Twitter at the fact that he was only allocated two tickets for his track sessions during the games. Having seen the tweet, Matt de Monte, from London, went on to purchase eight tickets for the athlete to hand to family members after Greene’s girlfriend had promised refund the cost, which amounted to £1,500.
Mr De Monte, who had become adept at buying tickets through foreign sellers who are allocated number of official tickets, had already purchased 20 tickets for various events during the games. He said: “It feels great. Anything which can help our athletes and Team GB achieve more at the Olympics is fantastic.”
With competitors limited to only two tickets for each session, many of the athlete’s families have feared that they will have to watch their loved ones on television. However, since Dai Greene’s story broke, numerous fans have used social networking sites to contact athletes and offer their assistance in obtaining tickets.
Speaking to the BBC, an ecstatic Greene said: “This is exactly what the Olympic spirit embodies.
“You don’t hear of many stories like this. It’s usually just doom and gloom - this is somebody going out of their way to help others,” he added.
For those who have applied for tickets and have not yet been successful through the official London 2012 website, the next round of sales takes place in April.
By Jonathan Trickey
[Image courtesy of Andrea Vascerllari]
