Women's Olympic freeski halfpipe final postponed a day because of heavy snow in the Italian Alps

LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — The women's Olympic freeski halfpipe final at the Milan Cortina Games will be held on Sunday, a day later than originally scheduled because of heavy snow in the Italian Alps.

The postponement of Saturday's race is the latest winter weather hiccup to impact the program.

Defending champion Eileen Gu and the rest of the field will now have to wait until 10:40 a.m. local time Sunday to vie for the last medals up for grabs in Livigno, a ski town in a mountain valley near the Swiss border that has been home to the freeski and snowboarding events.

The International Ski and Snowboard Federation said the snow that accumulated on the halfpipe from constant flurries on Saturday made it impossible “to ensure a safe and fair competition for all athletes.”

The final had been scheduled for 7:30 p.m. local time on Saturday. Officials then pushed that back to 9:00 p.m. before saying it was off.

Snowstorms this week have caused delays and events to be reshuffled twice already in Livigno.

Earlier Saturday, the men's skicross event was held amid flurries, and the freeskiers said the snow had made the course slow and extra demanding. Forty-year-old bronze medalist Alex Fiva called the skicross final “my toughest race ever” because of the conditions.

The women’s halfpipe final is the final event of the action sports events at the 2026 Games, which conclude on Sunday.

The final will feature Gu, the defending champion, going for her third medal of this year's Games and her sixth in as many career Olympic events.

The 22-year-old Gu, who was born in the United States and competes for China, has won two silvers in Italy, finishing second in both slopestyle and big air.

Four years ago, Gu became the first freestyle skier to win three medals in a single Olympics after she won gold in halfpipe and big air and silver in slopestyle at the 2022 Beijing Games.

Trying to stop her from repeating as the halfpipe champion will be Amy Fraser of Canada, the only skier to beat Gu in a major contest since she won Olympic gold four years ago. Zoe Atkin, an American-born skier who competes for Britain, is also eyeing the podium after she finished first in Thursday’s qualifying.

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Snowcat driver Oliviero Galli cleans up courses after a weather delay postponed the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Bao)

Snowcat driver Oliviero Galli cleans up courses after a weather delay postponed the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Bao)

Snowcat driver Oliviero Galli cleans up courses after a weather delay postponed the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Bao)

Snowcat driver Oliviero Galli cleans up courses after a weather delay postponed the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Andy Bao)

Heavy snow falls on shovels during a weather delay before the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Workers blow snow off the course during the men's ski cross final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

A worker clears snow from the course before the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary will block a planned 90-billion-euro ($106-billion) European Union loan to Ukraine until the flow of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline resumes, Hungary's foreign minister said.

Russian oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia have been interrupted since Jan. 27 after what Ukrainian officials said was a Russian drone attack damaged the Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian crude across Ukrainian territory and into Central Europe.

Hungary and Slovakia, which have both received a temporary exemption from an EU policy prohibiting imports of Russian oil, have accused Ukraine — without providing evidence — of deliberately holding up supplies. Both countries ceased shipping diesel to Ukraine this week over the interruption in oil flows .

In a video posted on social media Friday evening, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó accused Ukraine of “blackmailing” Hungary by failing to restart shipments. He said his government would block a massive interest-free loan the EU approved in December to help Kyiv to meet its military and economic needs for the next two years.

“We will not give in to this blackmail. We do not support Ukraine’s war, we will not pay for it,” Szijjártó said. “As long as Ukraine blocks the resumption of oil supplies to Hungary, Hungary will block European Union decisions that are important and favorable for Ukraine.”

Hungary's decision to block the key funding came two days after it suspended diesel shipments to its embattled neighbor and only days before the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.

Nearly every country in Europe has significantly reduced or entirely ceased Russian energy imports since Moscow launched its war in Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Yet Hungary and Slovakia — both EU and NATO members — have maintained and even increased supplies of Russian oil and gas.

Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has long argued Russian fossil fuels are indispensable for its economy and that switching to energy sourced from elsewhere would cause an immediate economic collapse — an argument some experts dispute.

Widely seen as the Kremlin’s biggest advocate in the EU, Orbán has vigorously opposed the bloc’s efforts to sanction Moscow over its invasion, and blasted attempts to hit Russia’s energy revenues that help finance the war. His government has frequently threatened to veto EU efforts to assist Ukraine.

On Saturday, Slovakia's populist Prime minister Robert Fico said his country will stop providing emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine if oil is not flowing through the Druzhba by Monday. Orbán's chief of staff, Gergely Gulyás, said earlier this week that Hungary, too, was exploring the possibility of cutting off its electricity supplies to Ukraine.

Not all of the EU's 27 countries agreed to take part in the 90-billion-euro loan package for Kyiv. Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic opposed the plan, but a deal was reached in which they did not block the loan and were promised protection from any financial fallout.

FILE - A general view of a pumping station at the end of the Druzhba oil pipeline in the east German refinery PCK in Schwedt, Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2007. (AP Photo/Sven Kaestner, File)

Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto holds a press conference following a cabinet meeting in Budapest, Hungary, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. (Boglarka Bodnar/MTI via AP)