Winter Olympics Big Air final delayed as blizzard hits Kirsty Muir bid

The Winter Olympics women’s freestyle skiing Big Air final involving Team GB’s Kirsty Muir has been delayed due to severe blizzard conditions in the Italian Alps.

Muir qualified fourth for Monday’s showpiece event, sitting just behind slopestyle medallists Megan Oldham, Eileen Gu and Mathilde Gremaud.

However, organisers have been forced to push back the start time by at least 90 minutes because of the extreme weather in Livigno.

Alpine conditions wreak havoc

Heavy snowfall and high winds have plagued the region throughout the day, making the course unsafe for competition.

Visibility dropped significantly as night fell on the venue, which sits nearly 2,000ft higher than neighbouring Bormio.

Ground staff have attempted to clear the landing zones with leaf blowers, but the persistent precipitation has rendered those efforts largely fruitless.

Officials initially postponed the event by 30 minutes before extending the delay to try and wait out the storm.

Slalom stars struggle in snow

The adverse weather also severely impacted the men’s slalom event earlier in the day on the Stelvio piste.

Only 44 of the 96 racers on the start list managed to complete the first run amidst the whiteout.

Several major contenders failed to navigate the course, including giant slalom champion Lucas Pinheiro Braathen.

While conditions eventually improved for the alpine skiers in Bormio, the situation deteriorated rapidly 35km away at the snowboarding and freeski venue.

The Big Air final is tentatively rescheduled to start at 20:00 GMT, though further postponements remain possible if the blizzard does not abate.

The British teenager will be hoping the event goes ahead as she looks to build on her impressive performance in the slopestyle, where she finished just outside the podium places.