Kitzbuehel: Training run No. 2 canceled as crews prep for Friday's super G

Kitzbuehel: Training run No. 2 canceled as crews prep for Friday’s super G{mosimage}KITZBUEHEL, Austria – Despite blue skies Thursday morning, World Cup race organizers canceled a scheduled second training run for the 66th Hahnenkamm downhill.

Organizers said 40-60 centimeters (16-24 inches) fell on the Streif course Tuesday night and Wednesday, and continued for much of Wednesday evening. More than a meter (3.3 feet) of snow had fallen during the week. Organizers said race crews from Kitzbuehel Ski Club, Bergbahn AG Kitzbuehel and Austrian Bundesheer would use Thursday to prep the course for Friday’s super G.

Austria’s Fritz Strobl was fastest in Tuesday’s first training run, but the race order for the downhill will be determined by the World Cup’s start order ranking system.

Racing commences at 11:30 a.m. Friday, with the highlight of the weekend, the downhill, set for the same starting time Saturday. Sunday, race action concludes with a two-run slalom, with first run set for 10:30 a.m.

The weather forecast was promising for the three race days, with sunny to partly sunny skies. Snowfall up to 4 centimeters (1.6 inches) is expected Friday night but shouldn’t delay downhill racing on Saturday.

A very talented field was set to descend on the nearby ski area at Westendorf for a FIS night slalom. On the start list are a number of World Cup racers, including American Ted Ligety, who stands second in the World Cup slalom standings behind Italy’s Giorgio Rocca. Austria’s Rainer Schoenfelder, Japan’s Akira Sasaki and Canada’s Thomas Grandi are also among the field.

Other Americans set to tackle Westendorf are Chip Knight, Tom Rothrock, James Cochran, Roger Brown, Drew Roberts and Jesse Marshall. Bode Miller will be a forerunner in the slalom as he continues to tweak his technical event equipment setup and technique. FIS regulations prohibit racers from competing in more than one FIS race in a 24-hour window, so Miller, primed to start in the super G on Friday, cannot enter the night slalom.