The first downhill skiing training session at the 2026 Winter Olympics has been cancelled due to heavy snowfall, Milan-Cortina organisers said on Wednesday.

"Due to the ongoing snowfall and the forecast for tomorrow the DH training 1 is cancelled," organisers said in a short statement to media.

Cortina d'Ampezzo was scheduled to host on Thursday morning the first of three downhill training sessions ahead of the race on Sunday which opens the women's alpine skiing competition.

The other two sessions, scheduled for Friday and Saturday on Cortina's Olimpia delle Tofane piste, are still set to be held but the weather forecast for the next few days is for more snowfall in the Dolomite mountains in northern Italy.

The cancellation means veteran Team USA star Lindsey Vonn will have to wait at least a day to take part in the one official training session she needs to be able to race the downhill.

Vonn insists that she will compete for medals in Cortina even after suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament while crashing out of last week's World Cup downhill in Crans-Montana. (AFP)