When the world tunes in to the Winter Olympics, the spotlight falls squarely on the athletes. Whether it’s the split-second downhill runs, gravity-defying aerials, or punishing endurance at cross-country events, the world’s most elite competitors face tremendous risks.
But what receives far less attention is the insurance infrastructure that enables elite training, preparation, and recovery, and that protects the personal trainers and specialists who help athletes push their physical limits.
Sarah Mendoza-Reid (pictured), vice president of agency services at Tivly, said personal trainers working with elite or semi-professional athletes often have misconceptions around their coverage. Brokers who understand and can articulate the insurance realities behind elite training will be best positioned to protect professionals supporting the world’s best athletes.
“I don’t think a lot of trainers, when they go into the industry, are thinking beyond general liability,” Mendoza-Reid told Insurance Business. “As their risk increases with the level of athlete that they’re training, their exposure and insurance needs are going to increase as well.”
According to Mendoza-Reid, the most important type of coverage for these clients is professional liability, which will “protect the personal trainer if they’re accused of improper training techniques, overtraining, poor conditioning advice, or unsafe programming.”
At the Olympic level, the financial stakes of a training-related injury can be enormous. A missed Games can mean lost prize money, sponsorships, and endorsement deals. According to Forbes’ past reporting on Olympic earners, top-tier winter athletes can generate millions annually in sponsorship revenue, making any interruption to competition a high-severity exposure.
For trainers, that translates into the need for meaningful limits. Mendoza-Reid estimates that a comprehensive package for a high-profile or Olympic-level trainer – including professional liability with a $5 million limit, general liability, workers’ compensation if applicable, inland marine for equipment, commercial auto, and up to a $10 million umbrella – can range from $4,500 to $12,000 annually.
By contrast, a trainer working with local clients and not traveling abroad might pay between $1,000 and $3,000 per year.
While the nature of athletic risk may not fundamentally change between a local gym and an Olympic training facility, the scale of loss does.
Mendoza-Reid gave a hypothetical scenario: a trainer recommends an aggressive pre-competition regimen that allegedly causes an athlete to aggravate a knee injury during a qualifying event.
If that injury sidelines the athlete for the Winter Olympics, the resulting financial loss could run into the millions, making excess liability or umbrella coverage critical. “The higher the limits, the more it’s going to protect that trainer,” Mendoza-Reid stressed.
One of the most common blind spots for trainers preparing athletes for global competition is territorial limitations.
“Most policies written in the United States are going to cover the continental US and Hawaii and Alaska, but usually they don’t carry abroad,” Mendoza-Reid explained. “So, having an endorsement on the policy that allows for coverage outside the US is important.”
With Olympic events staged across multiple countries – from PyeongChang in 2018 to Beijing in 2022 and Milan-Cortina in 2026 – training camps and pre-Games competitions frequently take place overseas. Without the proper endorsements, a claim arising from an injury during an international training session may fall outside coverage.
Travel insurance is another often-overlooked layer, according to Mendoza-Reid. Independent trainers are typically self-employed, and domestic health insurance may not respond overseas without specific provisions. Travel policies can address emergency medical costs, evacuation, and trip interruption.
There are also property considerations. Elite trainers often travel with specialized equipment, from performance-monitoring devices to recovery tools. Inland marine coverage can protect those mobile assets in transit and at temporary locations.
Finally, workers’ compensation may be triggered if a trainer employs assistants, massage therapists, or recovery specialists as part of a broader support team.
Despite the visibility of the Winter Olympics and the well-documented injury risks related to elite sport, many personal trainers entering the profession focus solely on general liability coverage.
Mendoza-Reid believes education is key. Brokers placing coverage for trainers in this space must ensure they understand the sport, level of competition, training methods, and geographic footprint. “The broker should know… as much as they can,” she said, including “where and how they train, what equipment they're using, what facilities they're using."
“It’s not the type of insurance where you can just call up and get a quote over the phone,” she stressed. “It's going to involve working with a high-level insurance broker who has the experience.”
