Tickets for the 2012 London Olympics went on sale overnight with organisers promising that the website would not crash under the expected huge demand.
Applicants were urged to approach the start of the ballot for 6.6 million tickets -- -- as a marathon not a sprint, with applications possible for the next six weeks.
London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe says there is no need to place their orders immediately as ticket allocation is not on a first-come-first-served basis, so every request made until April 26 stands an equal chance of success.
Organisers are determined to avoid the problems which plagued the 2008 Beijing Olympics, whose website crashed within minutes of tickets going on sale.
They say the site made a smooth start but halfway through the day some applicants found that anyone trying to pay with a Visa card which expires before the end of August this year had their order blocked.
A London 2012 spokesman says it's an issue with Visa rather than the website or their systems and is being sorted.
All applicants will find out if they have been successful by June 24.
Tickets for sports events range from STG20 ($NZ43) for early matches in the women's football tournament to STG725 ($NZ980) for the top-rated athletics sessions such as the men's 100 metres final when Usain Bolt could retain his title.
