Ethical Issues in Coaching Dangerous Sports

We consider the ethical obligations a coach has towards her athletes in facilitating actions that may result in the athlete&s;s injury or death and claim that there is inherent value in dangerous sports. We take a libertarian position in arguing that a coach should not prevent an athlete from taking risks that they freely choose to take. We discuss some of the recent legal challenges that sports governing bodies have been subject to on account of their legal duty of care. We distinguish between the legal obligations a coach has, how this differs from their ethical obligations, and how this difference manifests in different contexts. We also provide further consideration to the skills that coaches require in understanding their athletes and the wider context of sporting competition, as well as the coach&s;s ethical obligations to others who are part of their athlete&s;s wider network, such as family, friends, and colleagues. In this we consider the importance of self-reflection, humility, and care in being a good coach in an inherently dangerous sport.