Are: Men's super G pushed back to Monday

ARE, Sweden — Gale force winds through Friday night and into Saturday morning forced the postponement of the men's super G, the opening race of the World Championships scheduled for 12:30 p.m. local time (6:30 p.m. ET).

ARE, Sweden — Gale force winds through Friday night and into Saturday morning forced the postponement of the men's super G, the opening race of the World Championships scheduled for 12:30 p.m. local time (6:30 p.m. ET).
    The race is now scheduled to be run Monday, Feb. 5, when better weather conditions are expected.
    The women's super G scheduled for Sunday is still on, for now.
    The weather forecast just posted in the media center in Are calls for a possibility of snow on Monday but lighter winds. Things will dry out Tuesday and the temperatures are expected to drop through the rest of the week.
    There were winds of up to 108 kilometers (67 miles) per hour on the mountain, and strong gusts were expected to last until early Sunday, meteorologist Pia Hultgren said.
    Lasse Lindqvist, who heads the organizing committee, said workers would be forced to remove the safety netting on the men's course during the day to get rid of snow that had piled up.
    The outlook for the women's super G on Sunday was still positive, Lindqvist added, as winds were expected to calm down to about 45 kilometers (28 miles) per hour in time for the race.
    ''We also know the women's course is in a lot better shape than the men's,'' Lindqvist said.
    The postponement will push back a men's downhill training session slated for Monday. Lindqvist said there would likely be two training sessions on Tuesday instead, but that the International Ski Federation would make a decision later.
    "The winds were gale force around 7 or 8 o'clock and there was no chance to race," U.S. men's head coach Phil McNichol said, "so it's nice to have a day off. They're few and far between on the World Cup. We're always traveling somewhere or getting up on the hill at dawn … so this is a nice gift … a chance to get caught up on paperwork, grab a little extra sleep … and chill."
    Hultgren said more snow was expected Monday, but that the winds would likely be replaced by cold, stable weather by Tuesday which would last throughout the week.
    FIS President Gian Franco Kasper said Friday he was unworried about the weather causing major disruptions to the event, which lasts through Feb. 18. Kasper described Are as often having ''four seasons in one day,'' meaning troublesome winds or heavy snow are usually followed by better conditions.