Two men’s World Cup downhill races next weekend that start in Switzerland and finish in Italy were called off Saturday due to a lack of snow on the final 300 meters of the course following an unseasonably warm fall.
Added to the calendar this season, the Zermatt-Cervinia downhill against the spectacular backdrop of the Matterhorn was set to become the first cross-border event in Alpine skiing’s World Cup history.
FIS said the Oct. 29-30 races had to canceled “due to the lack of snow and the safety situation on last section of the race track” and will not be replaced.
A decision on two women’s races schedule on the same course for Nov. 5-6 was expected Tuesday.
The 4-kilometer Gran Becca course starts in Zermatt at an altitude of 3,700 meters and finishes in Laghi Cime Bianche above Cervinia at 2,835 meters.
While most of the course is covered by over a meter of snow, mild temperatures in recent weeks hindered snowmaking for the lower part.
FIS usually carries out its snow control two weeks before a World Cup event but last week postponed its decision on the races to give organizers more time.
Scheduled in late October and early November, the Zermatt-Cervinia downhill gives the speed season an early start, closing the gap to the traditional season-opening giant slalom in Austria in the third week of October.
In previous seasons, the first downhill and super-G races took place four weeks later, in Lake Louise and Beaver Creek.
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