LIVIGNO — A sudden snowstorm delayed the start of the women’s freeski big air final by 75 minutes Monday at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Organizers initially said the earliest the final would start would be 9 p.m. local time, a delay of 90 minutes. But competition eventually started at 8:45 p.m., with almost no sign of snow.
During the delay, workers used shovels and portable snowblowers to remove excess snow from the course at Livigno Snow Park.
Canadians Megan Oldham and Naomi Urness were both in the final, with Oldham having topped qualifying.
The 24-year-old from Parry Sound, Ont., has already won bronze in women’s freeski slopestyle, recovering from a nasty crash on her second run to deliver a gutsy final performance and make the podium Feb. 9.
The big air competition is one for daredevils — with a high pain threshold.
Athletes build up speed when they leave the top of the 55-metre jump, accelerating down a 40-degree incline to the five-metre-high kicker or jump, from which they launch their trick.
In qualifying, the men and women exceeded speeds of 50 km/h as they approached the jump.
Judges score on difficulty, execution, amplitude and the landing.
The structure, which spans 170 metres, has taken a toll on athletes.
Two-time slopestyle champion Mathilde Gremaud was taken off the course on a stretcher after injuring her hip crashing in training before the final Monday. The Swiss star, who won big air bronze in Beijing and slopestyle silver in 2018 in Pyeongchang, had qualified third.
Medics stretcher off Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud after she crashed during practice before the women’s freestyle skiing big air finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr) Medics stretcher off Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud after she crashed during practice before the women’s freestyle skiing big air finals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Switzerland’s Anouk Andraska (wrist) also pulled out of the final after a training crash.
On Sunday, teenage Finnish skier Elias Lajunen was involved in a horrific crash in qualifying, landing hard on his back before eventually sliding to a stop face down. Eurosport cut away from its broadcast until medical staff had taken him off the course.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 16, 2026.
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
