Ken Nielsen (born May 10, 1942 in Hanna, Alberta) is a former wide receiver for the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

from 1965 to 1970. Nielsen won the

CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award The Most Outstanding Canadian Award is annually awarded to the best Canadian player in the Canadian Football League. The two nominees for the award are the Lew Hayman Trophy winner from the East Division, and the Dr. Beattie Martin Trophy winner ...

in 1968.

College Football

Ken Nielsen played

Canadian university football U Sports football is the highest level of amateur play of Canadian football and operates under the auspices of U Sports (formerly Canadian Interuniversity Sport). Twenty-seven teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athletic confer ...

at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

Winnipeg

Though drafted by the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...

, Ken Nielsen was traded that same year to Winnipeg. Ken Nielsen became a standout wide receiver for the

from 1965 to 1970. In the

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

Western conference playoffs, Nielsen caught a 109-yard touchdown pass from

Ken Ploen Kenneth Ploen LAYN (born June 3, 1935) is a former star quarterback in American college football and for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). College football In 1956, Ploen became the University of Iowa Hawkeyes s ...

which beat the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-old ...

and helped send Winnipeg to the

53rd Grey Cup The 53rd Grey Cup, also known as the Wind Bowl, was hosted at CNE Stadium in Toronto on November 27, 1965. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 22–16. Weather conditions and change in punting rule Because of strong winds ...

game. But the Blue Bombers lost that game to the

, the so-called "Wind Bowl", when weather conditions were terrible for passing, punting, and place kicking. During training camp in 1970, after only five seasons, Nielsen suffered a serious neck injury which cut short his career. He caught 280 passes for 4,340 yards.

After football

Nielsen is a retired dentist now living in Kelowna, BC. He has four children and thirteen grandchildren.

External links

* 1942 births Living people People from Hanna, Alberta Alberta Golden Bears football players Canadian Football League Most Outstanding Canadian Award winners Canadian football wide receivers Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Players of Canadian football from Alberta Winnipeg Blue Bombers players {{Canadianfootball-widereceiver-stub