It’s as if the weather gods are mocking Zermatt. The sun shines on the top of the Klein Matterhorn, the World Cup course “Gran Becca” shines in its best light. At first glance there are excellent skiing conditions – and yet the World Cup premiere in Zermatt and Cervinia cannot take place. The combination of wind and snowfall overnight forced Saturday’s run to be canceled due to safety concerns.
Malicious reactions soon followed. The organizers got what they deserved, as Watson’s comment column said. Once again, false information was spread that the Theodul Glacier had been “destroyed with excavators” or that the World Cup course had been “milled into the glacier”. Neither is true. Every year, excavators fill the gorges in Zermatt and Cervinia with snow and ice to ensure the safety of skiers. Even Matthias Huss, a glaciologist at ETH Zurich, made it absolutely clear: the melting of glaciers will not be accelerated or slowed down by ski slopes.
Of course you can and should wonder whether a World Cup downhill makes sense in this situation. The organizational and logistical effort required to prepare a World Cup course at this altitude is enormous. And even if the organizers promise sustainable races, they are still a burden on the environment.
And then there’s the weather. The ski racers are exposed to the weather all year round. But in high alpine terrain at 3,800 meters above sea level it is even more extreme. The people of Valais like to brag about how often the sun shines here. But in November, even in Zermatt, there is often precipitation and bad weather. To believe that the best racing conditions will prevail for two weeks (men’s and women’s races) borders on naivete.
Yet there is no room for schadenfreude at this point. That would not be fair to the many first responders who have invested hours of their free time in recent days and weeks and in some cases have taken unpaid leave. They set up safety nets, sometimes in appalling weather conditions, cleared snow from the slopes and ensured that the athletes and trainers lacked nothing.
It’s also a shame about the spectacle. Because as Wednesday’s training photos showed, this race would certainly have been one under the best conditions. Now that is canceled and Marco Odermatt and Co. also deprived of the opportunity to score points in the highest discipline of ski racing. Another descent would be on the program tomorrow, but given the weather forecasts the chance of that is small. And catch-up dates are also difficult to find in the busy FIS calendar.
So people in Zermatt and Cervinia are clinging to the hope that at least the women’s races can take place in a week’s time. It would only be an honor for the many volunteers.
Source: Watson
I am Ross William, a passionate and experienced news writer with more than four years of experience in the writing industry. I have been working as an author for 24 Instant News Reporters covering the Trending section. With a keen eye for detail, I am able to find stories that capture people’s interest and help them stay informed.
