LIVE UPDATES: Men's downhill start time delayed

Travis Ganong of the United States skis during the men's downhill 2nd training session ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Yanqing Alpine Ski Center - Credit: Getty Images

Travis Ganong of the United States skis during the men's downhill 2nd training session ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Yanqing Alpine Ski Center – Credit: Getty Images

The high-octane men’s downhill competition leads off Alpine skiing at the 2022 Winter Olympics and NBCOlympics.com will have live updates as the action unfolds.

43 of the world’s fastest men on skis are prepared to attack “The Rock” downhill course with Olympic gold on the line. The two-mile long, half-mile tall course built specifically for the 2022 Games is shaping up to potentially host the fastest downhill race in Olympic history. Each athlete will get one attempt down the mountain in order to set the fastest time.

Among those expected to vie for the gold medal are a pair of Swiss skiers in two-time Olympic medalist Beat Feuz, along with 24-year-old rising star Marco Odermatt. The prevailing favorite, though, is Norway’s top-ranked downhill specialist Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. Kilde, whose girlfriend is American superstar Mikaela Shiffrin, logged the best time across all three official training sessions at 1:43.72 (the third training session was cancelled after just three skiers due to unsafe wind conditions).

SEE MORE: How to watch the Alpine skiing men’s downhill at the 2022 Winter Olympics

Three Americans, Bryce Bennett, Ryan Cochran-Siegle and Travis Ganong, all enter as dark horse podium hopefuls. Of the three, Bennett is arguably the most intriguing. The 6-foot-7 Californian picked up the first World Cup downhill win by an American in five years in December when he clocked the best time in Val Gardena, Italy.

Coverage of the men’s downhill was scheduled to begin at 10 p.m. ET, though the start time has been delayed at least an hour due to unsafe wind conditions. Follow along with the LIVE BLOG below for further updates.