Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet told insidethegames: "The figure of 13.4 million is the most accurate number as of today.

"But even now we don’t have concretely the final session on the Programme.

"Decisions will be made in the coming weeks from the IOC and, in a few months, the IPC.

"But we have a high ambition to sell over 3 million - more than previous Games."

Numbers and prices of tickets for the lower quays of the River Seine during the Olympic Opening Ceremony are also still to be decided.

But Estanguet added that "hundreds of thousands" will be able to watch for free from the higher quays by the Seine.

Tickets for the Paris 2024 Games will be accessed solely via a single worldwide digital platform that, it is claimed, will enable greater certainty for potential purchasers.

Unlike the process at previous Games, where people have reserved tickets and then had to wait for a draw process in which they may or may not be successful, the Paris 2024 model will involve a random draw at the beginning of the process.

Those successful in the draw will be able to access the site for available tickets for a limited time, but with the guarantee that they will receive the tickets they pay for.

That process is due to start for the Olympics at the end of 2022 with the opening of registration to take part in the draw.

The launch of the sales of tickets is scheduled to be in February 2023.

Asked about the origin of this newly configured system, Estanguet replied:

"It was a collective discussion," he said.

"We tried to learn from past editions of the Games, and to look at other major events, how they do it.

"Definitely we thought there was a possibility to improve the system and that’s why it’s a unique platform worldwide and it’s not any more only the host country and the other countries will have their own ticketing programme for the Games.

"It will be centralised, digital and worldwide and the random draw is devised to maybe better meet the expectation.

"People who come through the draw will have complete access to the tickets available, not the worse way of offering the message that we can try to buy everything if at the end there is no chance of purchasing those tickets.

"We prefer to pick the people, give them an access to the platform for a few hours and we will have a concrete proposal available and the guarantee that you can choose the tickets where you will go.

"Because sometimes in the past editions people were buying tickets that they really didn’t want and they simply didn’t show up during the events.

"And then there’s a risk that people will not come and there are not full stadiums.

"So this idea came out to try to agree the possibility for people to buy the tickets for events they want to attend."

Last December, the nature of the Chinese e-commerce giant Aibaba’s partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was reported to be causing a headache for French authorities as the countdown to Paris 2024 neared the two-and-a-half years to go mark.

The main concern was over whether sensitive data might somehow find its way into the hands of the Chinese state at a time when tensions with the West over a range of issues were growing.

Alibaba has been a worldwide sponsor of the IOC since 2017 with its exclusive categories covering cloud infrastructure and services, as well as ticketing and e-commerce platform services.

In a statement at the time, Paris 2024 insisted "ticketing for the Games will be operated by a European specialist who won the public tender."

Following yesterday's announcement that three companies have won the public tender to deliver the Paris 2024 centralised ticketing process as a joint venture - France Billet, CTS Eventim and Orange Business Services - Estanguet stressed:

"Alibaba will not be part of this ticketing programme.

"They are not part of the process.

"When we launched the process a few months, you could even say a few years ago, because it has been a long process on our side, it was not part of the discussion.

"Alibaba is not involved in the ticketing programme of Paris 2024."