Gwyneth Paltrow left skier ‘face down and spread-eagled’, court hears

Gwyneth Paltrow is alleged to have collided with Terry Sanderson, leaving him unresponsive at the Deer Valley Resort in Utah in 2016. Mr Sanderson, a retired optometrist, is suing the actress over the incident which he says left him with broken ribs and brain damage.

During the first day of the trial, jurors heard from eye-witness Craig Ramon, who had been skiing with Mr Sanderson and had been present in the aftermath of the collision.

Mr Ramon said he had heard a “loud” scream and saw a skier, later identified as Paltrow, crash into Mr Sanderson on the mountain, leaving him “spread-eagled”.

He said: “We were skiing down the run and then I heard this yell, this scream, and then I looked over and … then I see this skier just slam into the back of Terry.” 

Mr Ramon said he was the only person present at the time of the collision and that he had asked both Mr Sanderson and Paltrow if they were alright. 

He continued: “Terry wasn’t moving, his face was in the snow … his helmet was stuck in the snow. 

“[Paltrow] just looked at me and I asked her again. She got up pretty quick [but] she never said a word.” 

The court heard that a Deer Valley ski instructor, later identified as Eric Christiansen, had arrived soon after the collision and started “yelling” at Mr Sanderson, who was still lying on the ground. 

“He was yelling when he came down and it kept getting worse and worse,” Mr Ramon said.

“He was very hostile, he was just yelling and he was yelling to the point where I was thinking, ‘Man, you need to mellow out here’.” 

Mr Ramon said that Paltrow had then “bolted” down the hill, with Mr Christiansen telling him: “Your buddy just took out Gwyneth Paltrow.” 

The defence is seeking damages of up to $3,276,000 (£2,688,000).

The Oscar winner has filed a counterclaim, alleging that Mr Sanderson had hit her and delivered a full “body blow”. She is seeking damages of $1.

Stephen Owens, representing Paltrow, said she had been “freaked out” when she collided with Mr Sanderson.

In his opening remarks, he told the court: “This was not a hit and run. The plaintiff even had a ski expert evaluate it and he said it’s not a hit and run – take that out of your mind.

“Gwyneth was hurt by Mr Sanderson’s negligence… she is upset. Anyone sustaining a blow is upset, she is sore, she never went to a doctor…but it rattled her and it physically hurt her.”

Mr Owens described Mr Sanderson as “a poster” online and said he had messaged his daughters following the incident saying “I’m famous”. 

“He doesn’t post ‘I’m hurt’, he doesn’t post confusing stuff,” Mr Owens continued.

Producing a $1 bill, the amount Paltrow is counterclaiming for, Mr Owens added: “We ask you for a dollar.

“This is a lot to go through for a dollar…so she came for a family vacation, half the afternoon was kind of ruined, so that dollar is important to us, to my client.”

The trial continues.

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