Axed Under-23 soccer player Raynel Lightbourne yesterday protested his innocence after The Royal Gazette revealed he had been dropped from the Pan-Am Games squad for refusing to take a drugs test.

In a statement released by the PHC striker, who scored the goal in Jamaica which propelled Bermuda through to the Pan-Am finals, he denied that he had refused to be tested during a meeting last Saturday morning.

And he accused Bermuda Olympic Association of breaching confidentiality rules which supposedly protect those subjected to drug testing.

Said Lightbourne: "I wish to make it clear that although I did not take the drug test recently administered by the BOA, I have never refused to take any drug test by the BOA.

"Although I was one of several athletes who were asked to remain behind after the meeting on Saturday, no-one from the BOA ever told me what we were remaining behind for. Therefore how could I be accused of refusing to take a drugs test.

"Furthermore, drug testing is meant to be a confidential procedure and the manner in which the BOA apparently attempted to conduct their test could not possibly be seen as being confidential as is evidenced by my name being publicly announced on the radio and in the Press.

"I also do not believe that my name was randomly selected because: 1) The BOA announced the names which were obviously preselected; 2) I am aware of the close association of the BOA officials to Mr. Burkhard Ziese (former BFA technical director).

"Had I been asked to submit in the appropriate manner, I would have been more that happy to comply.'' Shown Lightbourne's statement, BOA president Austin Woods said he considered it "contradictory.'' "We never told people why they were staying behind,'' said Woods. "The BOA maintained the strictest confidence. We never publicly announced any names to anybody in order to maintain confidentiality.'' Lightbourne, however, found an ally in Devonshire Colts president and Shadow Health and Social Services Minister Nelson Bascome, who said the player's name should never have been allowed to leak out.

"The BFA needs to be slapped on the wrist,'' said Bascome. "Now we know that an individual's name can be leaked whether the test is negative or positive.

That's unfair, and it's dangerous.

"Too much of this kind of thing is going on within the BFA.

"But what has to be remembered is this wasn't the first drugs test. It's been happening all along (through the Pan-Am qualifying games). Many players have made themselves available for drugs testing.'' Bascome, meanwhile, spoke for the first time since being dropped as head of the soccer delegation which will travel to Argentina this weekend. And he admitted it was because of his role with Devonshire Colts, who allowed `Miami Seven' player Keishon Smith to take part in a recent league game in apparent defiance of the BFA, that he was forced to step down.

"I met with the president of the BFA (Richard Thompson) who told me he had had a change of heart because of my involvement with Colts. Basically, he said my club had been in direct defiance of the BFA and that made me responsible.

"I told him Colts was a democratically-run club and I was just one official with one vote. Any decision taken was done so by the club and not one man.'' Asked whether he agreed with Colts' decision to play Smith, Bascome said: "Basically I've been an absentee president lately, and the executive have been running the club.

"I didn't have to make that decision, the executive did. I have to agree with that decision.'' Bascome has been replaced in the BFA party by Wolves representative Delroy O'Brien.

Raynel Lightbourne