LIVIGNO — The women's freeski halfpipe final, the final event of the Milan Cortina Olympics in Livigno, has been postponed until Sunday.
"Unfortunately, due to persistent heavy snow and the inability to prepare the pipe in a safe and fair condition, the jury has made the decision to postpone the women's halfpipe finals to (Sunday)," the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) said in a statement.
The final is now scheduled to start at 10:40 a.m. Sunday local time (4:40 a.m. ET).
The final had been scheduled for Saturday at 7 p.m. local time (1 p.m. ET). Calgary's Brendan Mackay won bronze in the men's final Friday.
Wet snow fell much of the afternoon Saturday, drawing the ire of Canadian ski cross star Reece Howden. The World Cup leader, who failed to make it out of the quarterfinals, berated organizers for running the event in such poor conditions.
The women's final has star quality with China's Eileen Gu, looking to add to the silver medals she won in slopestyle and big air earlier at these games. Gu became the first freestyle skier to win three medals during a single Winter Games when she made her Olympic debut four years ago in Beijing.
A podium finish will see the 22-year-old break a tie with Canadian moguls star Mikael Kingsbury (two golds and three silvers) as the freestyle skier with the most medals in Olympic history.
Canadians Rachael Karker and Amy Fraser also made the final. So did Cassie Sharpe, but the 2018 Olympic champion from Comox, B.C., was forced to withdraw after a nasty crash in qualifying Thursday
Karker won bronze four years ago in Beijing and is a four-time medallist at the Winter X Games. The 28-year-old from Erin, Ont., now lives in Calgary with Mackay, her fiancé.
Fraser, a 30-year-old from Calgary, was eighth in Beijing.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 21, 2026
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
