BERNE – After the first week of action, the Organizing Committee of the 2009 IIHF World Championship in Berne and Zurich-Kloten is happy with the results, as was reported at a press conference at PostFinance Arena on Thursday.

“So far, we're right on track with ticket sales,” said Gian Gilli, General Secretary of the 2009 IIHF World Championship. “We've sold more than 287,000 tickets as of Day Seven of the tournament. Our occupancy during the Preliminary Round was 72 percent, exceeding the original estimate of 60 percent. Our goal is to reach an occupancy of 90 percent by the final round and sell over 300,000 tickets.”

Tickets remain available at the box offices and via ticketcorner.com, including tickets for the Swiss games versus Sweden (Sunday) and the USA (Monday).

Gilli added that he's very pleased with the atmosphere in the arenas, from the celebrating international hockey fans to Cooly, the lovable cow who serves as the mascot of the 2009 IIHF World Championship.

In addition, the participating teams have been very satisfied in general with the quality of the ice, dressing rooms, hotels, food, and transportation, Gilli said.

The policy of offering World Championship ticket holders free public transportation has also been a success. On Thursday, only 22 percent of the available parking space around the arenas was used, with most spectators coming to the games by train or bus.