Ski Racer Loses Claim Against Whitetail Resort

(CN) - Whitetail Resort isn't liable for the injuries of a teen ski racer who veered off course and hit a tree, the 3rd Circuit ruled.

The federal appeals court in Philadelphia dismissed a lawsuit filed by Anders Ellis Bjorgung, a 17-year-old expert skier who competed in a giant slalom race at the Whitetail Ski Area on Feb. 10, 2001.

Bjorgung missed one of the turns, skied into the woods and hit a tree. Both he and his father had signed liability releases, which the ski area used as a defense when Bjorgung filed suit over his injuries.

Because the ski resort had been sold in 1999, the defendants notified Bjorgung in early 2004 that he was suing the wrong entities. The plaintiff waited more than three years to correct his complaint and sue the right entities - too long, according to the appeals court.

The judges also rejected his claim that, as a minor, he failed to grasp the risks. The court reiterated that Bjorgung was an "expert skier and a highly experienced racer."

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