Snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz, an Olympic bronze medalist from Switzerland, died on Sunday after being trapped in an avalanche in the Swiss Alps.

Kestenholz, who medaled while snowboarding during the sport’s introduction to the Olympics at the 1998 Nagano, Japan, Games, was mourned Tuesday by the Swiss Ski Federation, which said he was 50.

Snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz smiles while holding up his bronze medal from the Nagano Olympics.Snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz, a former Olympic bronze medalist from Switzerland, died at 50 on Sunday. AP

Stuntman Ueli Kestenholz smiles, wearing a denim jacket over a blue patterned sweater.Kestenholz died after being trapped in an avalanche in the Swiss Alps. Getty Images for BOGNER

The decorated medalist was snowboarding down a remote slope in the Swiss Alps with a friend who was skiing when the avalanche was triggered for unknown reasons, according to a statement from Valais police.

The skier was able to make his way to safety on his own, while Kestenholz was buried underneath the snow. Kestenholz was rescued by his skiing pal and the Valais Cantonal Rescue Organization (OCVS) but later died in hospital on Sunday.