Organisers to give away closing ceremony tickets

MELBOURNE, Mar 22 (Reuters) Commonwealth Games organisers are planning to give away more than 20,000 tickets to Sunday's closing ceremony in an effort to fill the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The tickets will be handed to Games volunteers as well as performers from the opening and closing ceremonies.

Games chief executive John Harnden said that almost 50,000 tickets had been sold but organisers planned to give away those left over.

''We believe this is a great way to cap off and make sure that stadium is absolutely jam-packed on the final night of what is going to be a great two weeks,'' Harnden said.

REUTERS PM BST1455