Sports coaches don’t always have the world’s happiest job.  Every coach from the New England Patriots down to the Bullamakanka Netball Club gets castigated by supporters when the team fails to win.  And when things go really bad off the sporting field, every decision that lead there may be scrutinised as well.

On 27 December 2014 Kristen Galuardi, a pupil of Trumbull High School in Connecticutt, was engaged in a practice at the Fairfield Gymnastics and Cheerleading Academy.  It was alleged that the team’s director made two critical decisions in setting up the training.  First, one of the team was permitted to train in socks without shoes.  Second, the team were practising without spotters.  When Galuardi was thrown into the air, her team-mates attempted to catch her.  The team-mate wearing socks slipped and Galuardi hit the floor, suffering injuries.  She lost consciousness, but (it was alleged) the manager declined to seek medical assistance for her.

Galuardi sued for her injuries.  The case settled at the door of the Court for an undisclosed sum.  It is always difficult to draw lessons from a case that resolves by agreement rather than judgment; nevertheless, a few points can be made –

• The fact that an activity is sporting rather than (say) work-related does not reduce the standard of care on administrators: Wilson v O’Gorman High School (2008).
• Coaches should not increase the risks inherent in sports participation, at least outside the range of the ordinary activity involved in teaching or coaching the sport: Honeycutt v Meridian Sports Club LLC (2014).

Note: this report is largely based on the report in the Trumbull Times.

Galuardi v Town of Trumbull and Gymnastics & Cheerleading Academy (Superior Court of Connecticutt, 2019)