After 52 years as the head coach of the Pittsford schools’ girls varsity swim team, coaching legend Marty Keating is bringing his career to a close after this season.
Spectators filled the stands of Pittsford Mendon’s natatorium in New York in early October to celebrate Keating’s final home meet, which saw Pittsford defeat Fairport 122-63.
Keating was honored with a commemorative plaque before the meet and was given a framed team photo with handwritten notes from his swimmers.
The dual meet also recognized Pittsford’s four graduating seniors: Maura Sheehan, Hazal Sahin, Audrey Troskosky and Carolyn Knickerbocker.
Keating is head of the Pittsford high school district swim team, where he has spent the past 52 seasons guiding the girls’ team to immense success.
The 81-year-old coach has led the program to over 500 straight dual meet victories, starting back in 2008, and the team has undergone only two losses since 2002.
Keating told the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle that this year is shaping up to be Pittsford’s best team since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Pittsford S’women is coming back to the glory days of yesteryear,” Keating said. “I’m leaving whoever takes over for me with a nice little group of young girls.”
Under Keating’s guidance, the program has forged over 100 All-American and state champion swimmers.
In addition to heading up the girls’ program, Keating is also the assistant coach to the boys’ team. During his time as a coach of both programs, he has won a combined total of 34 Section V titles and 10 state championships.
He is aiming to win his 23rd consecutive section title with the Pittsford girls this fall.
Keating is well-beloved in the swimming community by other coaches and swimmers alike.
“He’s an icon,” Webster coach John Doerner said to the Democrat and Chronicle. “I love Marty. I love watching the way his kids respond to what he has them do, and they embrace it. It’s a model for every other coach.”
Keating is known for approaching his role with an ideology of individualized training, and many of his current and former swimmers have commended his style of coaching.
Pittsford junior Sarah Kunze spoke on Keating’s role in shaping her development as an athlete.
“He has truly shaped me into the swimmer I am today,” Kunze said. “He’s trained me to have so much self-discipline and motivation.”
Sophomore Lexi Lombard cited Keating’s influence as extending beyond the pool.
“Coach changed my mindset for life,” Lombard said. “You have to do things for yourself without someone telling you you have to do it.”
Keating grew up swimming at the Harlem YMCA before moving to Rochester, New York. He set multiple pool records at East High prior to graduating in 1961 and went on to compete for Howard University for one year.
Keating got his first coaching gig at the Arnett YMCA in 1968, kicking off what would turn into a 55-year-long coaching career. His first role as a varsity swim coach was with the Aquinas boys team from 1970-1973, before becoming the first girls and boys swim coach of Pittsford Mendon in 1973 when the Pittsford school district split.
The Pittsford district began merging teams in 1991, with Keating remaining the head coach of the girls’ team where he has been ever since.
Keating will officially retire from his role as a high school coach after the boys’ swim season wraps up in March, although he plans to keep coaching the Pack Swim Team of Pittsford, a local club team.
He is reportedly excited to catch up on all the sleep he has missed from waking up early on Tuesday and Thursday mornings for the last 52 years.
I swam for Coach K back in his first decade of coaching in Pittsford. I’ve seen the children of former teammates coming to swim for coach, and maintain the same level of excellence as teams from 20, 30, or 40 years before. This kind of sustained excellence is truly a rarity, and Marty deserves all the love, admiration, and appreciation we can give him.
Terric guy and a fantastic coach……always enjoyed talking to, make that listening to Marty at the annual NISCA meetings. Great role model for his colleagues and athletes. Enjoy that well deserved retirement my friend.
Heck of a coach, heck of a talker, and you knew his kids would always be prepared. Our main rival was Pittsford and we knew we’d always get an honest meet from them, which is all you can ask for.
SUPER GUY!!!! Loved talking and interacting with him at NCSAs and ASCA World Clinic!
Marty was a MATH teacher as well and he told me a story one time about his solution to getting kids to class on time:
He would do magic tricks right when the bell rang and they had to be seated…so the kids that came late missed it! And when they would complain about missing it…he let them know the importance of being ON TIME!
Congratulations my friend!
Coach Keating is the best. Taught his swimmers to believe and achieve. PACK= Philosophy according to Coach Keating. To the swimmers on deck- “Let there be pain.” IYKYK. Happy Retirement!
Can someone post the “gospel” that’s on the wall there? Seeing that my first time competing against Pittsford in highschool just let us know we were stepping into a different world.
Can we also get final confirmation on a 2 rumors that followed Keating around and were told by his athletes to boost the legend status?
1: PACK stood for Practice According to Coach Keating
2: At some point he held a World or American record in the 200 fly before it was broken by a swimmer in a later heat
I have a photo of the gospel, drop a form of contact and I can send it.
As to the record, the world may never know…
I would love a copy of the pic, [email protected]
Cannot confirm #1, but that’s what we were always told
Cannot confirm #2, but it was always a fantastic rumor
My goodness, what an absolute legend. The Pack Swim Club was my first swim team and while we didn’t have a tremendous amount of interaction with Coach Keating, mostly due to age and swim level, his presence was felt EVERYWHERE. Marty is a lion of a man and has inspired more young people than I can imagine. I am especially grateful for the relationship between Coach Keating and my late older brother, David. They had a wonderful friendship/mentorship inside and outside of the pool. Just a few of my memories:
- Giant painted wall with the “Gospel According to Keating”
- The Maroon and gold “pain bucket”, remember Marty was Mendon, not Sutherland
- Mendon vs. Sutherland dual meets, my first
… Read more »Well written Jonti – MK is one of the finest people to grace our sport! Would love to view a SwimSwam interview of him!
It would likely be the easiest podcast Coleman has ever done, just ask an opening question and then turn the mics off 45 minutes later.