After several weeks of uncertainty, the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup has worked out its post-holiday schedule, rescheduling the previously cancelled Watles (ITA) event while striking the planned La Plagne (FRA) off the calendar for good.
Poor snow conditions and warm temperatures have abounded throughout Europe this season, playing havoc with schedules across all the FIS disciplines. For the ski cross tour, this has meant that the Watles event initially scheduled for the weekend of January 8-10 was cancelled just after Christmas, while the La Plagne event scheduled for the following weekend waited for a final snow control before a decision would be made.
After this past weekend's snow control in La Plagne, it was decided that the snowpack remained too low for competition in the French resort and that it would be necessary to cancel that event also. However, in the interim, the snow situation in Watles had been improving steadily since that event's cancellation.
So, with the support of the organizers in Watles, the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup officials were able to reschedule the event there as a two-race weekend, with a qualification day on January 15, 2016, followed by back-to-back races on the 16th and 17th.
With this new solution, the ski cross tour will not lose any World Cup races, as Sunday's event will serve as a replacement for the lost La Plagne event.
The Watles competition will be the first World Cup event to be held at the small resort in the Italian Alps.
REVISED Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup Watles program
Audi FIS Ski Cross Watles official website
Audi FIS Ski Cross Watles Facebook page
Source: fis-ski.com
