Actress Gwyneth Paltrow denied Wednesday that she skied into a man who accused her in a lawsuit of seriously injuring him at a Utah ski resort, alleging in a counter claim that the man actually plowed into her from behind and delivered a full "body blow."
Paltrow was skiing with her children and friends Feb. 26, 2016 during a family vacation on a beginner run named "Bandana" at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah, when Terry Sanderson smashed into her, the actress' attorney alleged in a counter claim filed in court. Paltrow said she was shaken by the collision and quit skiing for the day.
She said Sanderson apologized to her and said he was fine, her response to Sanderson's lawsuit said. She had previously denied blame for the crash in a statement but had not yet offered a full version of the events.
"She did not knock him down," Paltrow's court filing said. "He knocked her down. He was not knocked out."
Paltrow, known for her roles in "Shakespeare in Love" and the "Iron Man" movies and her lifestyle company named goop, said her injuries were minor and that she is seeking "symbolic damages" of $1 plus costs for her lawyers fees from Sanderson for defending herself against what she called a "meritless claim.'
Her legal response to Sanderson also called his lawsuit an "attempt to exploit her celebrity and wealth."
Paltrow's account differs greatly from the sequence of events alleged by Sanderson in the lawsuit filed Jan. 29. He said Paltrow was skiing out of control and knocked him out, leaving him with a concussion and four broken ribs. Sanderson referred to it as a "hit and run" and is seeking $3.1 million in damages.
Sanderson, a retired optometrist, told reporters in Salt Lake City on the day he sued that he waited to file the lawsuit for nearly three years because he had problems with attorneys and could not function properly because of the concussion.
Sanderson's attorney, Robert Sykes, did not immediately respond Wednesday to an email seeking comment about Paltrow's response to his client's lawsuit.
Sanderson's lawsuit and Paltrow's response to it both cite an incident report filed by a Deer Valley ski instructor about the collision.
The instructor, who was skiing with Paltrow's 9-year-old son, said Sanderson was the uphill skier and hit Paltrow from behind. He said Paltrow had been making short turns as she skied behind her children, who were getting ski lessons downhill from her on the same ski trail, according to the report provided to The Associated Press by Paltrow's attorney through the actress' spokeswoman, Heather Wilson. It was not immediately clear if the report had been filed with the lawsuit.
But the instructor said in his report said he did not actually see the collision and only heard Paltrow scream and hit the ground. He did not explain in the report how he knew that Sanderson caused the collision.
Sanderson in his lawsuit accused the instructor of filing a false report. Sanderson said he also heard Paltrow scream, right before he said she crashed into him, his lawsuit said.
Deer Valley Resort spokeswoman Emily Summers said Wednesday that the resort cannot comment on pending legal matters. Sanderson's lawsuit against Paltrow also includes the resort as a defendant.
The resort's attorneys asked the judge to dismiss the lawsuit in a court filing Tuesday in which they denied that the instructor falsified the report and defended how ski patrol personnel responded to the crash.
The resort said its ski patrol hauled Sanderson in a toboggan to a medical tent after the collision. The resort denied it inflicted the emotional distress Sanderson said he suffered after the collision.
"A recreational skiing accident that plaintiff waited nearly three years to sue on simply does not constitute an event that renders a 'reasonable person unable to cope with his daily life," Deer Valley said in its court filing.
TOKYO (AP) — The American envoy to the United Nations called Friday for countries armed with atomic weapons to pursue nuclear disarmament as she visited the atomic bomb museum in Nagasaki, Japan.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who became the first U.S. cabinet member to visit Nagasaki, stressed the importance of dialogue and diplomacy amid a growing nuclear threat in the region.
“We must continue to work together to create an environment for nuclear disarmament. We must continue to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in every corner of the world,” she said after a tour of the atomic bomb museum.
“For those of us who already have those weapons, we must pursue arms control. We can and must work to ensure that Nagasaki is the last place to ever experience the horror of nuclear weapons,” she added, standing in front of colorful hanging origami cranes, a symbol of peace.
The United States dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. A second attack three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.
Nagasaki Gov. Kengo Oishi said in a statement that he believed Thomas-Greenfield's visit and her first-person experience at the museum “will be a strong message in promoting momentum of nuclear disarmament for the international society at a time the world faces a severe environment surrounding atomic weapons.”
Oishi said he conveyed to the ambassador the increasingly important role of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in emphasizing the need of nuclear disarmament.
Thomas-Greenfield's visit to Japan comes on the heels of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official visit to the United States last week and is aimed at deepening Washington's trilateral ties with Tokyo and Seoul. During her visit to South Korea earlier this week, she held talks with South Korean officials, met with defectors from North Korea and visited the demilitarized zone.
The ambassador said the United States is looking into setting up a new mechanism for monitoring North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Russia and China have thwarted U.S.-led efforts to step up U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its ballistic missile testing since 2022, underscoring a deepening divide between permanent Security Council members over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
She said it would be “optimal” to launch the new system next month, though it is uncertain if that is possible.
The U.N. Security Council established a committee to monitor sanctions, and the mandate for its panel of experts to investigate violations had been renewed for 14 years until last month, when Russia vetoed another renewal.
In its most recent report, the panel of experts said it is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks between 2017 and 2023 valued at approximately $3 billion, with the money reportedly being used to help fund its weapons development.
The United States, Japan and South Korea have been deepening security ties amid growing tension in the region from North Korea and China.
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, right, speaks to Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, second right, as they wait for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, right, walk to meet Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, talk prior to a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, prepare to talk during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)
