11th hour dash for Olympic tickets

With the six-week window to apply for the 6.6 million public tickets closing at 11.59pm today, now is the best time for sports fans to try to avoid disappointment, he said.

“Applications have been steady but at a high level, which is in line with operational expectations – but this week it has hit the roof.

“Every day we have got a massive number of orders, which is not surprising, because people have taken on board that it’s not a first-come, first-served system. They have sat down with their families to decide what they want.

“Since last Friday, we have seen a high level go to a really high level.

“Every day is different, but also in the last week we have been getting three or four times the applications above and beyond what was coming in for the previous five weeks – and the sky’s the limit based on the pattern that I am seeing at the moment.”

There are 650 sessions across 26 sports and 17 days to choose from and people will be limited to a maximum of 20 events each.

The most popular events, including the men’s 100 metres final, have a limit of four tickets per person.

Before sales began on March 15, more than 2.5 million people had signed up to the official website - www.tickets.london2012.com - wanting to go to the Games.

Ticket prices range from £20 to £2,012.

Mr Deighton added: “There will be a number of tickets left over. It was always the plan.

“If you are clear about what kind of tickets you desire, apply for them now. You will only regret it if you do not get around to it, and it will be much more difficult if you leave it.”.

A seat at the opening ceremony is on many people’s wishlist, buying patterns so far suggest. Many fans are also making multiple bids for seats at different events.

A random automated ballot will kick in for over-subscribed events.