Rio Paralympics reaches 20 percent of tickets sold

RIO DE JANEIRO - Nearly 80 percent of the tickets for next month's Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro remain unsold, but sales have increased sharply since the end of the Olympics, organizers said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, 133,000 tickets were sold, a new daily record for the Rio Paralympics, which will be held Sept. 7-18.

So far over 600,000 tickets, just over 20 percent of the 2.5 million available, have been sold.

The sports in highest demand are athletics, swimming, 5-a-side football, wheelchair basketball and sitting volleyball.

Poor Paralympic ticket sales have compounded the financial challenges in Brazil that have already hit operations at the Olympics.

Organizers have announced budget cuts that will mean one venue will close down, facilities will be dismantled and the workforce will be reduced.