Report from Beijing
By Shawn Doria
Herald Olympics Correspondent

With less than a week until the opening ceremony to the Beijing Olympics, tickets to various Olympics games have been sold out—except for those sold by scalpers on the street and online..

After more than a year of ticket sales online, they went on sale at various stadiums on July 25. And what a response!

These Olympics are a huge event for China. They serve as proof of China’s growth and its rising status in the international scene. So naturally almost everyone wishes to be present at least one game.

What’s more, the tickets are extremely cheap, if you can get one, usually only around 100 RMB (around $15). Thus, even though the stadiums only began selling the tickets on the 25^th, a Friday, people began lining up on Wednesday.

On Thursday, a very hot and humid day, I went down to one of the stadiums. What I saw was a line so long that it makes the Harry Potter launch day line looks like child’s play. In fact, there was a line for getting to the real tickets line.

People, mostly young men and women in their twenties and thirties, were sitting under the sun, talking amongst themselves or reading books and magazines, ready to sit in the same spot for over 24 hours. Later that night, I heard in the news that some older people passed out and were sent to the hospital due to the extreme heat and humidity.

Of course, most Chinese people expected this turnout, so many came prepared. Walking around the lines at night, I saw stacks of water bottles and boxed meals on the side of the road. Many came in a large group and took turns standing in the line.

Stools were essential, not only as a chair to sit on but as a platform to stand on it to see the happenings up ahead. Many brought books and flashlights so they could read when it was dark; some brought music players and radio.

On Sunday, I visited the grounds near the stadiums and noticed many people still walking around. Upon closer inspection, they’re actually people who are trying illegally to sell tickets to passersby who didn’t get one. Many of them, selling the ticket at three or four times their original price, would wander near the stadium, approaching those who looked disappointed. If caught by the police who are still patrolling the streets, these people’s tickets would be taken away, and they would receive a huge fine.

Meanwhile, tickets for the China-versus-America basketball game are sold online at over ten times their original price.