Below-knee amputee Amy Palmiero-Winters — who won a 2010 ESPY Award declaring her the world’s top female athlete with a disability — is suing her gym after they refused to return equipment she bought to train at the facility, according to a new lawsuit.
Palmiero-Winters, 48, trained at CrossFit CAMO on Long Island — and purchased $2,100 in equipment that was delivered directly to the facility.
But due to the pandemic-induced closure of all fitness centers, Palmiero-Winters was forced to continue her workouts at home.
The professional athlete asked the gym’s owner, Chad Gross, to let her pick up her equipment, but he allegedly refused, the Nassau Supreme Court filing states.
“Ms. Palmiero-Winters’ continued exercise regimen is critical to her success as a professional athlete, mentor and role model to other amputees as well as her own physical and emotional well-being,” wrote her attorney Norm Steiner in the suit.
Palmiero-Winters, who holds a dozen world records, famously completed one of the most grueling races in the world — 140 miles over six days in the Sahara — and she did it with a prosthetic leg, The New York Times reported.
The suit seeks monetary damages in excess of $25,000.
“While COVID has had a devastating impact on gym owners, it should never have chilled their humanity,” said Steiner.
Gross didn’t immediately return a request for comment.