Skiing: Britain's only Olympic ski medallist fails drug test

Alain Baxter, who became the first British athlete to win an Olympic skiing medal when he took the bronze in the men's slalom in Salt Lake City last month, failed a drug test after his Winter Games success.

The British Olympic Association said Baxter, 28, from Aviemore, tested positive for the banned stimulant methamphetamine after his shock third-place finish on 23 February. The association said it was notified on Friday by the International Olympic Committee that an athlete had produced a positive sample for the drug, commonly known as "speed".

Baxter said yesterday he was "devastated" at the news and pledged to clear his name. He is awaiting the result of a second test taken at the same time. If Baxter is found guilty of a doping offence, he would be disqualified and lose his medal to fourth-place finisher Benjamin Raich, of Austria.

The news is a blow to the British Olympic Association, which had its biggest Winter Games medal haul since 1936. The British women's curling team unexpectedly took gold, while Alex Coomber won bronze in the skeleton bob. Baxter's unforeseen triumph seemed to be the icing on the cake but could become the medal everyone remembers for the wrong reasons.

A ratified positive test would also bring him the ignominy of being Britain's first drug-tainted Olympian, although the former Olympic 100m champion Linford Christie was banned for two years after testing positive for nandrolone in 1997.

Baxter said in a statement: "I have never knowingly taken any medicine or substance to improve my performance and as such believe that I am entirely innocent.

"I am now working with lawyers and medical experts to present my case to the IOC's Inquiry Commission, and the IOC's Disciplinary Commission, which I am advised is unlikely to convene until next week, with a view to defending myself successfully against the charges of doping." He said he would not be conducting any interviews or making any further statements until the IOC ruled on his case.

Baxterfirst caused a stir in Salt Lake City by dyeing his hair blue and white to resemble the Scottish saltire. British Olympic officials persuaded him to change the design because it could have been seen as a political statement and he raced with bluey-green hair instead.

Baxter had not been expected to win any medal and said to make the top 10 would be a success. Instead, he saw five more fancied skiers fall to come away with the bronze.