Described as the Winnipeg Football Club’s first ever superstar, Melvin ‘Fritz’ Hanson has been selected as the 11th inductee to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers Ring of Honour.
The ceremony will take place during halftime at Friday’s game at Investors Group Field versus Montreal.
Hanson, a Perham Minnesota native, joined the ‘Winnipeg’s’ in 1935. The 5’7″ 145 pound ‘Perham Flash’ was known more for his style than his stature, helping the team become the first in Western Canada to win the Grey Cup.
Hanson was an all-star five times during his six-year tenure with the team and was recognized as Canada’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1939.
He was named to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1963 and the Winnipeg Football Club’s Hall of Fame in 1984.
Hanson became a Canadian citizen in 1966, joined the Canadian Army during the second World War and played with the Winnipeg Light Infantry squad from 1942-44. He returned to the Bombers in 1945 and finished his career in Calgary, helping the Stampeders win the 1948 Grey Cup.
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Hanson passed away in 1996.
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