Ueli Kestenholz, Olympic snowboard medallist, dies after being trapped in Swiss avalanche

• 50-year-old was snowboarding in Switzerland on Sunday

• Kestenholz won bronze in giant slalom at Nagano 1998

Snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz, who won a bronze medal in the sport’s first Olympic race, has died after being trapped in an avalanche, the Swiss Ski federation said on Tuesday. He was 50.

Kestenholz was third in snowboard giant slalom at the 1998 Nagano Olympics – a debut event that became a story of the Games when Canadian gold medallist Ross Rebagliati fought to keep his title after a positive test for cannabis.