PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — Weather delays have plagued Alpine races at the Winter Olympics for more than 50 years. It is a natural consequence of the typical Winter Games setting, where altitude and a seasonable climate can lead to excessive snow and high winds. Either one can make a ski course unsafe.
Although the Alpine courses at the Pyeongchang Olympics are not at an especially high elevation for an Olympics (less than 4,000 feet), strong, gusty winds of 40-to-60 miles per hour this week have whipped through the valleys and mountain passes.
The conditions caused the postponement of the men’s downhill here Sunday.