Shonvorreo Heard, by his next friend Shelia Heard, brought an action for negligence against the City of Villa Rica1 the City and Bryant Cash, a volunteer track and field coach for the City of Villa Rica Parks and Recreation Department, seeking damages for injuries Shonvorreo suffered during a training session conducted by Cash. Defendants answered, asserting among other things that Cash was acting as an unpaid volunteer and thus entitled to immunity pursuant to OCGA § 51-1-41 and that the claims against the City were barred by governmental immunity. Defendants subsequently moved for summary judgment. Heard responded, acknowledging that under OCGA § 51-1-41, volunteer coaches are generally immune from liability, but arguing that Cash’s conduct here fell within subsection c, which provides an exception to immunity when injury or damage is caused “by actions or inactions which are intentional, willful, wanton, reckless, malicious, or grossly negligent.” The trial court granted summary judgment to defendants finding that Cash was immune from suit under 51-1-41 a and that the record did not support a finding that Cash was grossly negligent so as to invoke the exception to immunity found in subsection c. Further, the trial court found, as to the City, that there was no evidence of a master-servant relationship and that the City could not be found liable under a theory of respondeat superior. The trial court also found that there was no evidence to show that Cash was negligently selected, retained or supervised. Heard now appeals from that order. 1. Heard first contends that Cash was not entitled to immunity under OCGA § 51-1-41, which provides in pertinent part as follows: a Sports officials who officiate amateur athletic contests at any level of competition in this state shall not be liable to any person or entity in any civil action for injuries or damages claimed to have arisen by virtue of actions or inactions related in any manner to officiating duties within the confines of the athletic facility at which the athletic contest is played. However, subsection c further provides: “Nothing in this Code section shall be deemed to grant the protection set forth in subsection a of this Code section to sports officials who cause injury or damage to a person or entity by actions or inactions which are intentional, willful, wanton, reckless, malicious, or grossly negligent.”
As is pertinent here, the mostly undisputed facts show that at the time Shonvorreo2 was injured, Cash was teaching Shonvorreo and other children the proper way to run down the runway and then perform a long jump into a sand pit. The specific instruction on that day was designed to teach the children how to stand up straight, use good posture, and drive their knees far up into the air. Cash testified that he critiqued everyone after an initial try, and then in keeping with how he had taught in previous years,3 he placed an object at the mouth of the sandpit for them to jump over. Cash testified that the purpose of having them jump over the object “was to get them to subconsciously stand up straight and jump as high as they possibly can.” Although Cash testified he had used different objects for this in the past, during this session he was using a makeshift plastic hurdle, which apparently was in the shape of a saw horse.4 Cash, testified that the cross bar of the hurdle was set at the lowest position, which was “below his knees.” Cash testified that Shonvorreo was one of the first to volunteer to jump over the hurdle and that he had attempted one jump over the hurdle but had broken that jump off before it was completed. He testified he knew Shonvorreo had a difficult time running “straight up” because he normally ran leaning “really far forward,” and that he told Shonvorreo to make a second attempt and he would instruct him when to stand up. It was during this second attempt that Shonvorreo was injured.
