Polo player is sued for £2million after horse crush horror
A TOP international polo player is facing a £2million lawsuit after one of her horses fell on a groom at a stately home and crushed her.
Elena Thorman, 20, was badly injured when Catherine Lamacraft’s horse Harri reared and fell on top of her.
Ms Thorman had been caring for the animal before a tournament in the grounds of the Knepp Castle Estate, West Sussex, when the accident happened in July 2018.
Now 25, she is suing Ms Lamacraft for £2million, claiming the incident has robbed her of a dream career in the Army after the ‘lifechanging’ injuries. A payout is guaranteed after Ms Lamacraft’s lawyers admitted liability for the accident in June 2020, but they are disputing the amount claimed.
She is suing Ms Lamacraft, of Knowle Farm, Somerset, under the Animals Act 1971, which governs the responsibilities of owners of potentially dangerous animals.
The polo player’s lawyers have asked for Ms Thorman, of Petworth, West Sussex, to prove that she would have had a successful career in the Army if the incident had not happened. During a pre-trial hearing at London’s High Court, Ms Thorman’s barrister, Emily Read, said she had also suffered PTSD and that her pelvis injuries may lead to complications should she choose to have children.
She told the judge, Deputy Master Alexandra Marzec, that Ms Thorman had intended to join the Army or the police. She asked the judge’s permission to call Army officers to give evidence supporting her, including a Major General.
‘She fractured her pelvis in many places. This was a life- changing injury,’ she said.
According to documents lodged with the High Court, Ms Thorman was employed by the top amateur, who has represented England several times, at her yard for polo ponies in Fernhurst, West Sussex, at the time of the accident.
Ms Thorman’s lawyers said she was riding Harri before a match when ‘suddenly and without warning, she reared. The claimant was unseated. Harri then landed on top of the claimant. It was immediately apparent that the claimant had suffered serious injury.’
Michael Rapp, for Ms Lamacraft, told the judge: ‘We know the claimant has improved in the last couple of years.’
He argued that the Army officers’ testimony would be ‘wholly opinion not factual’. The judge said there would be a six or sevenday trial to accommodate all the witnesses and experts.