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| | Court Decision May Push Coaches Over the Edge of Liability By Robert Warne - August 1, 2003 A high school freshman female, who broke her neck diving into shallow water from a starting block at a swim meet, is testing the legal depths that have traditionally protected coaches from liability for such accidents.
When the then 14-year-old, Olivia Kahn inquired about joining the East Side Union High swim team in San Jose, the coach, Andrew McKay assured her she could compete without having to dive off the starting blocks.
At her third meet she alleges he told her that if she wouldn’t dive off the blocks, she couldn’t compete. Kahn, determined to compete, went to an area in the pool that was 3 1/2 feet deep and started to practice her dives. It was on her third attempt that she hit the bottom and broke her neck.
Kahn, who is now 22, walks with a limp and has little sensation on one side of her body and suffers from headaches.
The Santa Clara County Superior Court, and Court of Appeal have already dismissed Kahn’s claim against her coach. The appeal court justices reasoned that sports instruction would be hampered if coaches were held liable for challenging their students to accomplish more.
They also stated that Kahn didn’t have to swim that day and that she took it upon herself to practice the dive without her coach’s knowledge.
The case is slated to go before the California Supreme Court this summer and is sure to catch the attention of athletic organizations and sponsors statewide. Many fear that a ruling in favor of Kahn would mean that men and women who volunteer, as coaches, could be held liable for a player’s injuries and sport programs would ultimately suffer as a result.
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