Bronislau "Bronko" Nagurski (November 3, 1908 – January 7, 1990) was a Canadian-born American football player in the National Football League (NFL), renowned for his strength and size. Nagurski was also a successful professional wrestler, recognized as a multiple-time World Heavyweight Champion.
Nagurski became a standout playing both tackle on defense and fullback on offense at the University of Minnesota from 1927 to 1929, selected a consensus All-American in 1929 and inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in its inaugural year of 1951. His professional career with the Chicago Bears also made him an inaugural inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.
Nagurski was born in Rainy River, Ontario, Canada, of Ukrainian and Polish descent, and his family moved to International Falls, Minnesota, when he was age five. His parents, "Mike" and Michelina Nagurski, were immigrants, from Western Ukraine (region called kresy where many ethnicities lived together (Halychyna/Galicia). Young Bronislau grew up working on his parents' farm and sawmill, delivering groceries for his father's grocery store and in his teens laboring at nearby timbering operations, growing into a powerfully muscular six-footer.