Update - BOTH Cross Border Matterhorn Cervino Races Cancelled
Despite the greatest efforts and tireless commitment on the part of the organizing committee, the men's downhill racesof the Matterhorn Cervino Speed Opening were cancelled on Saturday after the final snow check by race director Hannes Trinkl and assistant Raimund Plancker (men) due to the lack of snow and the safety situation on the course. This event was a flagship competition for FIS and the cancellation is a blow.
Update- FIS has issued a notice cancelling the womens' races. "Due to the unchanged weather conditions during the last days and the still unfavorable forecast, the women’s Audi FIS Ski World Cup races in Zermatt-Cervinia (SUI) scheduled on 5th - 6th November 2022 are cancelled. FIS will not replace the two cancelled downhill races."
However, the organizers are continuing to work at full speed in order to be able to hold the planned women's races on November 5th and 6th, 2022 as planned.
The final snow control for the men’s race took place today, but unfortunately the weather did not cooperate. The slope on the glacier is in race-ready condition, but on the lower part of the course, it rained heavily. From the end of the glacier to the finish, the slope is not ready for racing and safety for the athletes is not guaranteed either - for this reason the men's races were cancelled on Saturday, October 22, 2022.
The final snow control for the women’s races will take place on Tuesday 25th October.
“We have done so much in the past few weeks and months. Logistically and organizationally, we are ready. On the track, the team gave everything to the end so that we could also manage the lower part of the racetrack. Ultimately, however, we must recognize that nature is always stronger than man," says OC President Franz Julen.
FIS recognizes the great efforts of the organizers
FIS regrets the cancellation of the men's race as part of the first cross-border downhill run in the history of the World Cup. "The organizing committee has not only achieved great things in the past few days. It was certainly not their fault that the men's races could not take place. The Matterhorn Cervino Speed Opening is a new and unique project that we continue to believe in. There is a possibility of a change in weather. We are therefore giving the organizers until Tuesday to make a final decision about the women's races," explained FIS Secretary General Michel Vion.