First 2010 Olympics tickets on sale

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- Applications were accepted online Friday for the first batch of tickets for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, officials said.

Requests will be taken until Nov. 7, when decisions will be made as to who gets which tickets, the Vancouver Organizing Committee, known as VANO, told CTV News.

The system was introduced in a bid to reduce the potential for ticket scalping, Caley Denton, VANOC vice president of ticketing and consumer marketing, told the broadcaster.

"The whole system has been built around fairness and accessibility," Denton said.

The Games will take place in Vancouver and Whistler, a resort town about 80 miles to the north, from Feb. 12 to Feb. 28, and the Paralympic Games follow from March 12 to 21.

About 1.6 million tickets will be offered for sale. VANOC officials anticipate $230 million in ticket sales, the report said.