California University of Pennsylvania Athletics

According to former California University swimming coach Terry Scott, he is “Cal’s best swimmer ever.” He was the MVP swimmer at Cal four years in a row, the team captain for three years and a national finalist for three years. James Nairn worked very hard during his swimming career, and the hard work has led him into being selected the only swimmer to be inducted into California’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

“I am proud of the statement that Terry Scott made. I worked very hard for four years. When you swim, it is a team sport, but when you are in the water, you are an individual. You have to have a fairly cocky attitude that you go out and say that you are the fastest and then go out and prove it in the water,” Nairn said.

“They called me a hot dog, but I backed it up. I tried to push the other guys to make them better because if they got better, they pushed me and that made me better. I am very proud to have him say that, but I worked for it and I believe that I attained it,” he continued.

Nairn began swimming when he was about four or five years old at the local swimming pool in Clairton. As he matured, his weight never seemed to grow into his height, as a ninth-grader in Clairton High School, he only weighed 115 pounds. His lack of size forced him to head for the waters on the Clairton swimming team rather than playing football or baseball.

At Clairton, Nairn was asked to swim butterfly, and he became very successful with the stroke, along with freestyle. He was a four-year letterman and served as the team captain during his senior year.

Nairn was the first Clairton swimmer in 20 years to make the state championship meet. He placed sixth at the state championship meet in the 400-yard freestyle. Swimming helped Nairn make the transition into college.

“When I graduated from high school, I wanted to continue to swim and stay out of Vietnam. I had really no idea what I was getting into. My father worked in a steel mill for 27 years. Most of the guys that graduated from Clairton High School in 1967 figured they were going to the steel mill and work for 30 years. To go to college was something new,” Nairn said.

When Nairn was in high school, he was recruited by both West Virginia University and Ohio University. Instead of heading off to a large Division I university, Nairn decided to stay close to home and attend Cal.

“The reason that I didn’t go to West Virginia was because they were swimming in a pool that was a barge from the second world war. They put two together and made a 25-yard pool. You could barely see the bottom or the end of the lanes. So, West Virginia wasn’t very appealing,” Nairn said.

“I was looking for someplace that had a new facility, which Cal had. And, I guess it was the challenge of starting something new and trying to make it a success. I liked Terry Scott. We hit it off well, and I liked the opportunity that was given to me down here,” he continued.

Nairn was a four-time place winner in the butterfly stroke while he swam for Cal. He also was a four-time national qualifier, but freshman weren’t allowed to compete at nationals, so he was only a finalist for three of those four years.

As a sophomore, Nairn finished 10th in the nation in the 100-yard butterfly, which was his only event. He continued to swim faster the next two years, but the competition also improved. He was never able to finish higher than 10th nationally, even though he swam in three events - two butterfly and one freestyle. Nairn holds almost all of the team’s swimming records. He swam on a team, which he says was unique.

“The team was a mix of some real strange people. There was one guy that if you went down to one of the bars in the evening, he would be there pounding down Iron City beers and smoking Camels with no filters. He was our distance swimmer. The guy showed up every day for practice. When he was in the water, sometimes we were wondering if he was going to make it the whole way. He put an effort in and would get us a couple of points,” Nairn said.

After Nairn graduated from Cal, his swimming career didn’t end. He continued to swim in the Allegheny Masters Swimming Association at competitive meets. In 1993, Nairn placed second in the 200-yard butterfly at the National YMCA masters, which was held in Fort Lauderdale at the Swimming Hall of Fame.

Synonymous with swimming excellence at California University was James Nairn, who starred for the Vulcan mermen during the late 1960's and early 1970's. He was a four-time place winner in the butterfly and was also a four-time National Qualifier who finished 10th in the nation in the 100-yard butterfly as a sophomore. In March of 1970, Cal hosted the PSAC Swimming Championships and placed an impressive third. Nairn captured third place in the 100-yard butterfly event and placed fifth in the 200-yard butterfly. Nairn also regularly competed in the 200-yard freestyle event.

A consistent and devoted swimmer who holds virtually every school swimming record, Nairn also placed at the well-respected Penn-Ohio Relays whose competition included many Division I schools. During his senior year, Nairn helped Cal produce dual-meet victories over: Morris Harvey, CMU, Lock Haven, Akron, Slippery Rock, and IUP. Nairn was labeled "Cal's best swimmer ever" by former Cal swimming head coach Terry Scott.

Nairn has remained an active competitive swimmer since his college days by competing in the Allegheny Masters Swimming Association. He finished an impressive second in the 200-yard butterfly at the National YMCA Masters Meet in 1993.

Nairn is an account executive for the DeLallo Company in Jeanette and resides in Brownsville with his wife, Marilyn.