Winter Olympics 2014 events delayed by Sochi fog; U.S. pins ice dancing hopes on Meryl Davis, Charlie White

SOCHI -- Mother Nature took center stage early Monday in Sochi, with thick fog affecting two events. The men's biathlon 15km mass start -- a Russian favorite -- was nixed for the second day in a row, and the snowboard cross event was postponed.

Two Americans were in with a good chance in the snowboard cross - Nate Holland who finished fourth four years ago in Vancouver, and teammate Trevor Jacob. Both men will have to wait for another day, however.

The rescheduling didn't seem to be a major concern for the athletes, though.

"This is standard for snowboarding and ski events. Mother Nature doesn't always cooperate," Holland said.

Later Monday the U.S. has a chance for another gold medal as the figure skating duo Meryl Davis and Charlie White -- who wowed the audience Sunday night with their short program and got the top scores to enter the free skate portion the ice dancing competition with a lead in points.

In Vancouver, Davis and White got the silver, but they’re hoping for a more precious metal on Monday night.

The Alpine schedule wasn't affected Monday, but the women's giant slalom on Tuesday was pushed forward by 90 minutes to avoid problems. Rain and snow is forecast to begin falling on Tuesday morning and continue through the afternoon. The first run will now begin at 9.30 a.m. and the second at 1 p.m.

Jessica Lindell-Vikarby of Sweden, one of the favorites in the GS, said it would have been impossible to have the event on Monday.

"When it's this thick you cannot race," Lindell-Vikarby said. "It has to be more open, for sure."

The ski jumping venue is at a lower altitude and was not shrouded in the thick fog. A training round for Nordic combined athletes was held without disruptions, and the ski jump team event was also expected to go ahead as scheduled on Monday.

In biathlon, fog is an even bigger problem because it limits the visibility on the shooting range.

"You have to be able to hit the targets," said Jerry Kokesh, the editor of the International Biathlon Union's official website, adding that the course becomes more dangerous as well. "Uphills are not a problem, but downhills are. ... That can be a serious safety concern."

The first week of the games went by without any major disruptions to the schedule before Sunday's biathlon race was postponed, despite concerns going into the Olympics about the warm climate in Sochi. IOC spokesman Mark Adams said every Winter Olympics normally faces some rescheduling because of the weather, and that Sochi has been relatively unaffected.

Certainly not from Holland, the snowboarder, who said it was better to wait another day than to compete in poor conditions.

"It's the Olympics, we want to have the best rider win and not have anything screwy," Holland said. "So we'll be back tomorrow and let her roll from there. It's time to drop the hammer and the sickle on this course."

In non-sports-related news, an Italian lawmaker and gay rights activist said she was detained briefly on Sunday after displaying a rainbow flag that said in Russian, “gay is ok.” Police and Olympic organizers said they know nothing about the claims made by Vladimir Luxuria.