WHISTLER, Canada, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Olympic men's downhill was scrubbed Saturday due to rain, snow and warm weather deteriorating course conditions, and the headache seems getting stronger as the sleet continues on.
What makes things worse is the forthcoming 10-day forecast for Whistler won't be anything close to be very cold.
The men's downhill of the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games would begin Monday at 10:30 local time. The women's combined event, originally scheduled for Sunday, has been tentatively kicked to Thursday.
The men's combined is still scheduled for Tuesday, but an instant call is advisable for the update weather hotline before making plans, with the women's downhill still on tap for Wednesday.
Highs in the mid-40s Fahrenheit degrees almost every day, and at or below freezing only three nights, never getting colder than 29 for the next 10-day spin.
There's a good chance of sleet, rain, and perhaps snow showers, on Sunday and Tuesday, then turning partly cloudy and finally sunny by next weekend.
Weather postponements are nothing unusual at the Winter Games. And this is nothing compared to 1998 Nagano Olympics, on a mountain in Hakuba, when the world waited five days for the downhill and watched the entire Alpine schedule get scrambled like eggs.
It wasn't easy for Nagano, but the organizers squeezed the 10 Alpine skiing races, doubling up events some days.
Not everyone has been dismayed with the prolong. U.S. media applaused a lot for the climate which earned time for their medals favorite Lindsey Vonn, who entered the Games not knowing whether she could compete after bruising her shin on Feb. 2 from a training run in Austria.
The postponement for U.S. team was credited as a heaven-sent opportunity, which enable the World Cup No. 1 to recover in time to be competitive.
The mist, fog, slush and mud on pants are seen everywhere. Washington Post defined Whistler's weather as a summer seaside resort style.
How balmy and wet has it been in this ski resort? Sweatshirts are as common as anoraks. Sheepskin coats are passe. Umbrellas are more popular than those sought-after red Maple Leaf mittens. That's what's Whistler feel like from the Post.
The Games opened, and competitions are under way. A compact schedule surely hinders athletes' performance, especially for those qualified for multiple events. What the organizers needed most the moment at Whistler is the bright side in the soaking rains, blinding fog, piles of dirty snow and mountainside patches of grass and mud.