Early morning winds on Saturday shredded the finish area of a World Cup stop in Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria. (photo: Getty Images/AFP-Joe Klamar/courtesy USST)

Weather Delays Vonn’s Attempt at Win Record

Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria – High winds over the weekend canceled both World Cup ski races scheduled in Austria, delaying Lindsey Vonn’s run at breaking the women’s World Cup victory record.

An early morning windstorm at 5:30 a.m. on Saturday shredded the race hill and finish area at Bad Kleinkirchheim, forcing FIS officials to cancel Saturday’s scheduled Audi FIS Ski World Cup downhill.

“Finally I figured out this downhill course and we have a wind storm…ugh,” Vonn tweeted on Saturday morning. She currently has 61 World Cup wins to her credit, one shy of Austrian racer Annemarie Moser-Proll, who retired from the tour in 1980.

Early morning winds on Saturday shredded the finish area of a World Cup stop in Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria. (photo: Getty Images/AFP-Joe Klamar/courtesy USST)
Early morning winds on Saturday shredded the finish area of a World Cup stop in Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria. (photo: Getty Images/AFP-Joe Klamar/courtesy USST)

Winds shredded the finish area and safety fencing lining the course. Officials attempted to soldier on with Sunday’s super G, even moving the start time up to 11 a.m. to avoid a predicted afternoon storm. This time organizers got it started – albeit 45 minutes late – but after 11 racers officials pulled the plug as winds continued to sweep over the venue, further destroying infrastructure.

The women’s World Cup tour will now move on to Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy for a downhill and super G this weekend. A decision on rescheduling the canceled races is pending.

 

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