1 MARCH 2004
Sophie Wessex has returned to Britain on crutches after hurting her leg during a skiing holiday in Switzerland. The Countess had travelled to St Moritz to spend some quality time with husband Prince Edward and their new baby daughter, but her time on the piste was cut short by an injury.

The couple had decided to leave Lady Louise with a nanny while they headed off for some fun on the slopes. And they even hired a helicopter to take them to some more challenging runs in neighbouring Austria.

Things went wrong on Friday, however, when the 39-year-old pulled a muscle in her right leg. The precise details of the accident are not known, but it has been revealed that visibility was poor when she got hurt. Apparently the royal declined the offer of a stretcher, insisting that she could make her own way to a doctor.

"The Countess pulled a calf muscle but it is not serious," revealed her spokeswoman. "She was checked out by a doctor and discharged after 20 minutes. Fortunately nothing was broken."

It's not the first time Sophie has suffered a spill on the slopes - she also found herself on crutches after a skiing trip in 2000.