Updated :
Monday July 30 , 2012 3:27:08 PM
Organisers will hope for fuller stadiums and drier weather to keep up the momentum of the London Olympics on Monday as some of swimming's great names slug it out in a heavyweight men's freestyle clash.
Sports fans from all over Britain, who had been charmed by the Olympic publicity offensive but let down by a complex ballot system for the 8.8 million tickets, have been outraged by footage of empty seats at some of the hottest events including tennis, swimming and gymnastics.
Organising committee chairman Sebastian Coe said the missing spectators were mostly officials from sports federations, other Games officials or their families and friends.
He said organisers were trying to fill spare seats by inviting local children and teachers to use spare tickets, selling more tickets and upgrading other ticketholders.
Many of the seats at Sunday's gymnastics were filled by soldiers taking a break from Olympic security duties.
Those who did witness Sunday's action could have had few complaints about two world records in the pool, a dazzling exhibition from the U.S. basketball team and dramatic upsets in gymnastics and the men's 4x100 freestyle relay.
Even the stormy weather, which held up the tennis and equestrian competitions and drenched thousands of spectators, provided its own drama in the women's cycling road race.
Monday sees one of the most anticipated races in the pool, the 200 freestyle where American Ryan Lochte, Sun Yang of China and France's Yannick Agnel will all chase a second London gold.
Lochte won gold in the 400 individual medley, trouncing his compatriot Michael Phelps, Sun triumphed in the 400 freestyle and Agnel overhauled Lochte to clinch a shock gold for France with a devastating surge on the last length of Sunday's 4x100 relay.
TOP SWIMMER?
Monday's race includes world record holder Paul Biedermann of Germany and South Korea's Park Tae-hwan and could decide bragging rights over who is the best male swimmer at the Games.
Also up for grabs are the men's 100 backstroke, where Matt Grevers of the U.S. qualified fastest, the women's 100 backstroke where Australia's Emily Seebohm almost broke the world record in qualifying, and the women's 100 breaststroke where 15-year-old Lithuanian Ruta Meilutyte leads the field.
On Sunday, South Africa's Cameron Van der Burgh and American Dana Vollmer set world records in the men's 100 breaststroke and women's 100 butterfly respectively, both erasing times set in 2009 before buoyancy-boosting polyurethane bodysuits were banned.
Van der Burgh became the first South African male to win individual Olympic swimming gold.
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima, trying to be the first male swimmer to win gold in the same event at three successive Olympics, could only finish fifth.
There was a further pool gold for France when top-ranked Camille Muffat won the women's 400 freestyle.
Phelps's silver in the relay was his first in these Games, to go with 14 previous golds and two bronzes, and left him one shy of the all-time record of 18 held by Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina.
Monday's weather is forecast to be sunny but British cyclist Lizzie Armitstead could not have been happier with the rainstorms that helped her land the host nation's first medal of the games, a silver
Organisers will hope for fuller stadiums and drier weather to keep up the momentum of the London Olympics on Monday as some of swimming's great names slug it out in a heavyweight men's freestyle clash.
Sports fans from all over Britain, who had been charmed by the Olympic publicity offensive but let down by a complex ballot system for the 8.8 million tickets, have been outraged by footage of empty seats at some of the hottest events including tennis, swimming and gymnastics.
Organising committee chairman Sebastian Coe said the missing spectators were mostly officials from sports federations, other Games officials or their families and friends.
He said organisers were trying to fill spare seats by inviting local children and teachers to use spare tickets, selling more tickets and upgrading other ticketholders.
Many of the seats at Sunday's gymnastics were filled by soldiers taking a break from Olympic security duties.
Those who did witness Sunday's action could have had few complaints about two world records in the pool, a dazzling exhibition from the U.S. basketball team and dramatic upsets in gymnastics and the men's 4x100 freestyle relay.
Even the stormy weather, which held up the tennis and equestrian competitions and drenched thousands of spectators, provided its own drama in the women's cycling road race.
Monday sees one of the most anticipated races in the pool, the 200 freestyle where American Ryan Lochte, Sun Yang of China and France's Yannick Agnel will all chase a second London gold.
Lochte won gold in the 400 individual medley, trouncing his compatriot Michael Phelps, Sun triumphed in the 400 freestyle and Agnel overhauled Lochte to clinch a shock gold for France with a devastating surge on the last length of Sunday's 4x100 relay.
TOP SWIMMER?
Monday's race includes world record holder Paul Biedermann of Germany and South Korea's Park Tae-hwan and could decide bragging rights over who is the best male swimmer at the Games.
Also up for grabs are the men's 100 backstroke, where Matt Grevers of the U.S. qualified fastest, the women's 100 backstroke where Australia's Emily Seebohm almost broke the world record in qualifying, and the women's 100 breaststroke where 15-year-old Lithuanian Ruta Meilutyte leads the field.
On Sunday, South Africa's Cameron Van der Burgh and American Dana Vollmer set world records in the men's 100 breaststroke and women's 100 butterfly respectively, both erasing times set in 2009 before buoyancy-boosting polyurethane bodysuits were banned.
Van der Burgh became the first South African male to win individual Olympic swimming gold.
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima, trying to be the first male swimmer to win gold in the same event at three successive Olympics, could only finish fifth.
There was a further pool gold for France when top-ranked Camille Muffat won the women's 400 freestyle.
Phelps's silver in the relay was his first in these Games, to go with 14 previous golds and two bronzes, and left him one shy of the all-time record of 18 held by Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina.
Monday's weather is forecast to be sunny but British cyclist Lizzie Armitstead could not have been happier with the rainstorms that helped her land the host nation's first medal of the games, a silver
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