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Ghost Town

Rio 2016: Top class athletes are competing on the world stage, so what’s with all the empty seats at the Olympics?

IT came as a shock to see so many empty seats during the Rio 2016 opening ceremony, but no-one expected the problem of unfilled venues to persist once the Games began in earnest.

was back at the height of his powers on Sunday, but his straight-sets victory in the first round of the men's singles tennis was only viewed by a paltry crowd of spectators.

Focused: Nadal was back on form in his first Olympic match since 2008
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Focused: Nadal was back on form in his first Olympic match since 2008Credit: Getty Images
The turnout for such a momentous match can only be described as disappointing
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The turnout for such a momentous match can only be described as disappointingCredit: Reuters

And it's not just the tennis which was affected. Over the weekend, no more than 500 people attended the boxing, while the beach volleyball court on Rio's Copacabana beach was only 20% full when the players walked out on court.

Even the gymnastics, one of the most perennially popular Olympic events, and the football, Brazil's biggest sport, were hit by the curse of the empty seats.

So why is this still happening?

Shambles: A lonely spectator watches the action unfold
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Shambles: A lonely spectator watches the action unfoldCredit: AP:Associated Press
Low on atmosphere: Athletes have complained that responses from the crowds have been subdued
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Low on atmosphere: Athletes have complained that responses from the crowds have been subduedCredit: AP:Associated Press

Firstly, the tickets haven't all been sold yet. As of Monday morning, organisers say 84% of of the 7.5 million available tickets have been sold, as well as only 29% of the 2.5 million tickets for the Paralympics.

The Olympic committee's excuse has been that South Americans are very late buyers - but maybe they just haven't been convinced by the thrills of the Games. Tickets are expensive and the organisers have found it difficult to convince Brazilians that the Games they've paid for have been worth the money.

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The situation has got so desperate that appeared in adverts over the weekend urging Brazilians to buy tickets.

Meanwhile, many international fans have stayed away from Rio after scares of anti-government protests, crime, and the Zika virus. If stars such as decide not to attend the Games because of the potential danger, then why should people go to spectate?

Sit down if you dare: Claims that seating hadn't been tested set spectators on edge
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Sit down if you dare: Claims that seating hadn't been tested set spectators on edgeCredit: AP:Associated Press
Shunned: Many Brazilians have received the Games with hostility, leaving dedicated fans to pick up the slack
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Shunned: Many Brazilians have received the Games with hostility, leaving dedicated fans to pick up the slackCredit: AP:Associated Press

But even the people who did buy tickets found themselves struggling to get to their seats on time due to hapless security checks and obscene queues. It currently takes 2 hours to get in to some of the stadiums, and fans watching the tennis had to wait 20 minutes just to buy water.

The organisers put the outrageous delays down to overzealous police and difficulty communicating with private security firms. But if they want to avoid the embarrassment of empty seats, they'll have to do better.

Problematic: The empty seats are another embarrassment for the organisers, who have also faced accusations that their stadiums would not be ready on time
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Problematic: The empty seats are another embarrassment for the organisers, who have also faced accusations that their stadiums would not be ready on timeCredit: AP:Associated Press

Then there's the problem of ticket touts, who have continued to menace the Games. 40 touts were arrested outside the Olympic Park on Monday, and ten Brazilians were arrested over the weekend for trying to sell tickets they had bought using cloned credit cards. Two employees of a British ticket agency were also detained in Rio on Monday, with 1,000 tickets confiscated.

With so many tickets being bought up and sold through unofficial channels, it is unsurprising that so many people have decided to steer clear of buying tickets altogether.

So will those empty seats ever be filled?

Nadal's return to the Olympics was greeted with a whimper, not a bang
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Nadal's return to the Olympics was greeted with a whimper, not a bangCredit: AP:Associated Press

The Rio organisers have gone back on their promise not to give away tickets and given 240,000 unsold tickets to local schoolchildren, bussing them in to the venues in an attempt to fill them up.

It's perhaps the best solution to a very undesirable problem.

But if the swathes of empty seats at Rio have made one thing clear, it's just how important the spectators are to an event like the Games.

 

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