Alain Baxter pleased to ‘pave the way’ for a new breed of British alpine skiers
The Scot had his era-defining achievement erased from the history books.
Twenty-four years ago Alain Baxter slalomed to a bronze medal in Salt Lake City only to have his era-defining achievement erased from the history books over his use of an over-the-counter nasal inhaler.
The controversial ruling – which conceded that Baxter had not knowingly taken a banned substance – robbed Great Britain of its first ever Olympic skiing medal, but not the source of inspiration that others could exploit.
Baxter, now 52, has served as the nation’s head alpine coach since 2021, playing a crucial role in the remarkable rise of Dave Ryding from a dry slope in Pendle to his extraordinary World Cup win in Kitzbuhel in 2022.
As Ryding prepares to wind up his career with a fifth and final Olympic appearance in the men’s slalom in Bormio on Monday, Baxter spoke of his pride in playing a pivotal role in helping new generations of British alpine skiers beat the odds.
He told the Press Association: “It’s so impressive what Dave has done, staying in the top 15 for more than a decade, and I like to think I paved the way and showed British skiers what was possible.
“Obviously podiums and World Cup wins were something I missed out on, but Dave has just taken it to another level. In turn, he has inspired our younger training groups to push on and take their skiing to another level.”
Baxter returned home to Aviemore with his medal in 2002 and was treated to an open-top bus parade before the adverse findings resulted in a protracted legal battle, after which his bronze was stripped and awarded to Austria’s Benjamin Raich.
But, at his home in Lancashire, 15-year-old Ryding was far from impacted by the unseemly aftermath of British skiing’s greatest moment.
“I can still picture what I was doing and how I felt when Alain got his medal in Salt Lake,” said Ryding.
“I call it lighting a flame, and I still remember that feeling I had the day I saw him get third. I was 15 years old and I’d hardly trained on snow at the time. I was still in Pendle and just seeing a British guy win a medal, and the emotion that gave, really stayed with me.
“To have him back, and giving up so much of his life to help us, says a lot about Alain as a person. Having him at the start-gate is such an asset for me. I know he understands what I’ve been through and at certain times it makes a big, big difference.”
Baxter’s 17-year-old daughter Brooke is part of a young British alpine squad that the Scot insists has plenty of potential, despite battling a brutal UK Sport cut that has left the squad having to rely on six-figure national squad funding.
“The financial situation is sad but we’re working on it,” added Baxter. “I believe that from our current training group we could win another World Cup. We want the team to get bigger, so we can create more opportunities for it to happen.”
