Monday, October 6, 2014

Pan Am Tickets Part 2

Today is the last day to request tickets for the Pan Am Games in the initial lottery process. Have you sent in your request? I wrote last week about the criteria I was using to order my tickets. You can read that post here.

This post is giving a bit more information about the various events and venues. You can see the seating charts for the venues and ticket pricing chart below. They really help in choosing what price point to choose as some events will be much better with the most expensive seats (for example, along the 100m straight/finish line at the athletics venue). For others, cheaper tickets are great value. People who are used to seeing the Raptors at the ACC won't mind seeing basketball from any location in the much smaller Ryerson Athletic Centre.

I decided to request tickets for the opening ceremony, closing ceremony, triathlon and trampoline medal session through this ticket process. I'm hoping to get tickets for many more events once the general sale occurs and/or the schedule is revealed in more detail (who is competing and when).

I chose trampoline because there is only one medal session for the sport which means that we are assured of seeing Canada's best in men's and women's as opposed to artistic gymnastics which have various disciplines and are ticketed separately. It is also a great opportunity to hear the Canadian anthem played or see our trampoline athletes on the podium. I am making an assumption that medals will be handed out after the event.

I love this description for the triathlon:
"Grandstands will be erected for both water and road course sides, providing spectators with a prime location to experience all sports at this venue. Taking full advantage of the dual seating system will be the men’s and women’s triathlon – with the grandstands allowing for a view of the swimming course, the transition area and the course’s finish line."

I have never attended a triathlon event, but this sounds like a great vantage point to see the race.

For me, this type of special seating makes it worth going to the Pan Am Games. I would love to see track cycling and really hope to get tickets during the general sale and when I have a better idea of the specific schedule but I know that in the years to come, I will go to Milton to see track cycling. The venue will not change. This is also the case for many sports like swimming, diving, athletics, canoe, rowing, etc. so I am considering whether I will be able to see a sport (before and) after the Games when choosing my tickets.

Another venue that I am hoping to see is the Beach Volleyball Centre:
"Built as a temporary venue, the Chevrolet Beach Volleyball Centre will have 3,000 metric tonnes of sand brought in to create an urban beach. This must-see venue will welcome thousands of enthusiastic spectators for nine days of heart-stopping competition."
I know some beach volleyball players who could compete at the Pan Am Games so I am choosing to wait until the schedule is posted in the hopes of seeing one of them compete. Fingers crossed that it won't be sold out by then - although sold out events will be good news for the Pan Am Organizing Committee.

The Pan Am Organizing Committee announced a few days ago their top 10 ticket requests so far. This is probably a good indication of the events that will sell out first (depending on venue size). Gold medal and bronze medal games are also great choices if you don't mind who is playing but want to see the best representing Pan Am nations.

1. Soccer (Hamilton $20-$35) very affordable with strong Canadian teams.
2. Opening Ceremony (July 10 Rogers Centre $100-$350)
3. Equestrian (Caledon and Mono $25-$75) Choice of dressage, eventing, jumping
4. Track & Field (York University $40-$140) 10am prelims ($40-$70) 5/6pm medal ($80-$140)
5. Artistic Gymnastics (Pan Am Park, Toronto $45-$75) 9 medal sessions to choose from
6. Swimming (Scarborough $40-$140) 5 days: 10am prelim ($40-$70) 7pm medal ($80-$140)
7. Diving (Scarborough $20-$45) 6 medal sessions ($35-$45) to choose from
8. Beach Volleyball (Pan Am Park $20-$45) 25 prelims($20-$30), 2 medal sessions ($35-$45)
9. Indoor Volleyball (Pan Am Park, Toronto $20-$45) 18 prelims and 4 medal sessions
10. Synchronized Swimming (Scarborough $20-$45) prelims July 9, 2 medal sessions Jul 11

Here is an overview of the pricing for the various sports:


Here are the available seating charts with pricing for the various categories.

Opening Ceremony CatA $355 CatB $230 CatC $155 CatD $105
Closing Ceremony CatA $205 CatB $155 CatC $125 CatD $95
CatA $145 CatB $125 CatC $105 CatD $85
CatA $145 CatB $125 CatC $105 CatD $85
(note: CatC and CatD are in front of the diving facility)
CatA $145 CatB $125 CatC $105 CatD $85
CatA $80 CatB $65 CatC $50
CatA $50 CatB $40
Medal Games CatA $80 CatB $65 CatC $50 (Prelims $30-$50)
Medal CatA $80 CatB $65 CatC $50 (Prelims $30-$50)

CatA $80 CatB $65 CatC $50
CatA $50 CatB $40

Good luck to all of you who have requested tickets and thank you for reading.

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