Bronislaus "Fred" Kijek (1919-1986) was a Grey Cup champion and All-Star fullback in the early days of

Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...

. He was also an excellent punter and flying wing. The son of Joseph Kijek and Mary Buita, Kijek was a well traveled football player. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he played with his hometown

Hamilton Tigers The Hamilton Tigers were a professional ice hockey team based in Hamilton, Ontario. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1920 to 1925. The Tigers were formed by the sale of the Quebec Bulldogs NHL franchise to Hamilton intere ...

, the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

(playing five regular season and two playoff games), the

Toronto RCAF Hurricanes The Toronto RCAF Hurricanes was a member of the Ontario Rugby Football Union and was formed during the Second World War after several teams disbanded for the war. The team was composed of football players who had joined the Royal Canadian Air Forc ...

(with whom he won his first Grey Cup), and the Camp Borden RCAF Fliers. He played for the Toronto Indians for a couple of seasons, then joined the inaugural

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...

team in 1946. He won his second Grey Cup with them in 1949, his "terrific" punting being a key to victory. He returned home for his final two seasons with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Kijek was twice an

Ontario Rugby Football Union The Ontario Rugby Football Union (ORFU) was an early amateur Canadian football league comprising teams in the Canadian province of Ontario. The ORFU was founded on Saturday, January 6, 1883 and in 1903 became the first major competition to adopt th ...

all star. He died on March 21, 1986.

References

{{Canadianfootball-runningback-stub 1919 births 1986 deaths Montreal Alouettes players Toronto Argonauts players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Hamilton Tigers football players Ontario Rugby Football Union players Players of Canadian football from Ontario Canadian football people from Hamilton, Ontario