Thomas Cook has apologised to hundreds of sports fans who will be forced to collect tickets for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Fans expecting tickets through the post have been left empty handed as the tour operator struggled to dispatch deliveries in time.

In some cases fans will only be able to collect tickets hours before the event.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook said: “Our priority is to ensure our customers take their seat at the Games.

“Unfortunately, a very small proportion have experienced a delay and we’ve contacted them all to confirm collection of their tickets from a choice of locations in London.”

The tour operator said those having to collect their tickets would receive the £5 delivery charge back as a “goodwill” gesture.

The troubled holiday retailer – an official supplier of the games - still had almost a quarter of its 300,000 tickets for the Games to sell last month.