The Women’s World Cup downhill was cancelled again on Sunday due to strong winds on the Matterhorn, a day after it was first called off. The men’s events at the same venue were cancelled last week for similar reasons.
‼️ Due to strong wind gusts the jury together with the LOC decided to cancel today’s downhill. ❌💨 #fisalpine pic.twitter.com/Kb3TrH3JAf
— FIS Alpine (@fisalpine) November 19, 2023
“Due to strong wind gusts the jury together with the LOC decided to cancel today’s downhill,” FIS Alpine announced on X (Twitter).
It is unclear if or when the first speed race of the season will be rescheduled.
The Zermatt-Cervinia downhills have yet to be completed; last year was to be the debut for both the men’s and women’s events but the races were cancelled after unexpectedly warm weather and a lack of snow.
International Ski and Snowboard Federation women’s race director Peter Gerdol said of Sunday, “We tried, we let the athletes inspect [the course] as well, with the hope the wind would [be] less strong. The wind decreased a little bit, but still not enough to have a safe race.”
“We will need in the next weeks or month [to] sit together — the organising committee, all the stakeholders, the two ski federations, and FIS — and make all the proper analysis what happened and then the decisions for the future.”
Defending overall champion American Mikaela Shiffrin holds the current lead. She was not scheduled to compete at Zermatt-Cervinia this weekend.