Nancy Krut Gailey

“Always finish with your best” is a favorite phrase that Nancy Krut Gailey could commonly be heard saying across the pool deck.  In 1991, Nancy became the head coach of the Beaver Area men’s & women’s swimming team.  Over the next 20 years, she would become the winningest swimming coach in Beaver history with 303 victories.  The Bobcat swimming & diving program celebrated 15 consecutive years of winning seasons under her leadership. 

Hundreds of swimmers and divers qualified for the MAC, WPIAL & PIAA Championship meets.  She coached her teams to 5 section AA titles (1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2011), 84 school records, one WPIAL individual champion, one ALL-American recognition, 8 All State honors, 10 All State honorable mention honors, two MAC runner-up team championship finishes & 4 undefeated seasons. She would also like to credit her amazing assistant coaches for their support throughout her career.

Truly believing that everyone should be given the opportunity to learn how to swim, the Beaver Community Swim Club was founded in 1994.  During the next 16 years, over 2,000 of Beaver’s youth learned how to swim from the amazing student instructors & coaches.  Her legacy at the school remains that anyone could be a member of the swimming or diving team, as long as they were willing to put their best effort forward.  Nancy also required members of her team to excel both in the pool & in the classroom.

In 2006, after volunteering for many years at the Beaver County Special Olympics swimming event, she founded the Special Olympics swimming program for Beaver Area School District. This program was successful in teaching many valuable lessons to both the students and the athletes.

In 2014, Nancy was inducted into the Beaver County Hall of Fame for coaching. In 2022, The Beaver County Times named her one of the Women in Sports Pioneers.  Nancy was also listed in the Beaver County Times for Title IX: 50 years later, PA Women Forging the Way.

During her high school years at New Brighton, she was the captain of the Lion’s swimming team, & graduated holding five school records.

Today, she continues her love for sports by supporting Beaver Area’s athletes in the athletic department & watching her grandchildren compete in their own sporting events. Without the constant support of her husband, Gregg, and their children, Brent, Adam & Gretchen and their spouses, none of these accomplishments would have been possible.