Vancouver 2010 Olympic Organizing Committee Sues Travel Company

by Yuliya Talmazan | May 25, 2009 at 12:43 pm

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VANOC --Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Winter Games -- is suing Roadtrips, a travel company based in Winnipeg, for selling Olympic travel packages, which include event tickets that the company does not have a legal right to sell.

Organizers of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics are suing a Winnipeg-based travel company in an effort to stop black-market ticket sales for the Games.

Games organizers say Roadtrips and its president, David Guenther, are offering tours that include tickets to the Games that they don't have a legal right to sell.

VANOC is warning that people who purchase Olympic tickets from unauthorized retailers can have their tickets voided at Games time. Currently, the 2010 Olympic tickets can only be purchased online from VANOC's official website, by phone from VANOC, or from venue boxes at the time of the Olympics. There are also lotteries run by VANOC's official partners that offer Olympic tickets as prizes. The list of VANOC's partner company names is accessible on VANOC's website for people to check before buying the lottery tickets.

VANOC's guidelines for purchasing Olympic tickets:

Online: During Phase 2 (Starts June 6, 2009) and throughout future phases of the ticket-buying process, all Canadian residents can create a secure online account at vancouver2010.com where ticket purchases are processed in real time on a first-come, first-served basis. Residents who participated in Phase 1 can sign in using their existing account to purchase tickets.

By phone: During Phase 2 (Starts June 6, 2009) and throughout future phases of the ticket-buying process, all Canadian residents can call 1.800.TICKETS (1.800.842.5387) and speak to an agent who will be happy to process ticket purchases in real time on a first-come, first-served basis. The Vancouver 2010 Ticketing Call Centre is open between 9:00 am and 7:00 pm (Pacific Time) Monday through Friday (excluding holidays) and Saturday between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm.

In person: All 2010 Olympic Winter Games venue box offices will open on the first day of competition at each venue. Main boxes offices in Whistler and downtown Vancouver will open in January 2010.

Official Partner Contests and Promotions: From time to time our official partners may run contests that include tickets to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games as prizes. Please visit the Sponsors and Partners page of vancouver2010.com.

Aside from vancouver2010.com or an official Vancouver 2010 Partner, any individual or group claiming to sell 2010 Olympic Winter Games tickets is making that claim falsely. Buyers should be aware that tickets bought from an unauthorized source may not be valid and may not be accepted for entry to 2010 Winter Games venues

On its website, Roadtrips travel agency is advertising its Vancouver 2010 travel tour packages, promising:

Choice of Tickets to Any Event
Roadtrips offers tickets to every Winter Games event, including the spectacular Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

Moreover,

Roadtrips faced a similar suit over its sale of tickets to the Beijing Summer Games in 2008, but the company has said the case was dismissed.

In Beijing, hundreds of people who bought tickets from brokers showed up in China only to find out their tickets were invalid.

My guess is that Roadtrips is not the only violator out there. So, for VANOC to ensure quality experience for all guests and spectators, it will have a lot of black-market issues to resolve in the next eight months leading to the 2010 Games. Ultimately, dissatisfied guests won't remember the name of the unscrupulous ticket vendor, but the reputation of the Games will definitely be marred.