Ticats receiver Keaton Bruggeling, three former CFL players named to Canadian Olympic bobsleigh team

Photo courtesy: Bob Butrym/RFB Sport Photography

CFL players won’t have to wait until 2028 to get their taste of Olympic glory, as the Canadian bobsleigh team has named four alumni to their squad for Milano Cortina 2026, including current Hamilton Tiger-Cats receiver Keaton Bruggeling.

The native of St. Catharines, Ont., suited up in nine games last season for the Ticats and caught seven passes for 63 yards. Originally selected in the third round of the 2022 CFL Draft out of Carleton University by the Ottawa Redblacks, the 27-year-old has caught 15 career passes for 146 yards and a touchdown in 40 CFL games.

Bruggeling is currently a pending free agent and is scheduled to hit the open market on February 10. He will begin training heats as part of the men’s four-man bobsleigh in Cortina a few days later, with competition heats running on February 21 and 22.

Joining Bruggeling for his first Olympic Games are former CFL players Jay Dearborn, Shaq Murray-Lawrence, and Luka Stoikos.

Dearborn first competed at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, where his sled finished 23rd, but he will pilot a sled this time around. The Yarker, Ont., native last played in the CFL with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2023, suiting up in one game, but is best remembered for his time with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He appeared in 21 games for the team in the 2019 and 2021 seasons, recording 18 defensive tackles, six special teams tackles, and two interceptions as a strong-side linebacker.

Murray-Lawrence has been a fixture of the national bobsleigh program since 2020, but has been selected to the Olympic team for the first time. He was named an alternate in 2022, but later alleged that he was passed over in favour of Dearborn for reasons related to systemic racism.

A third-round CFL Draft choice in 2015 out of UNLV, the Scarborough, Ont., native spent parts of five seasons with the B.C. Lions, Riders, and Montreal Alouettes. He carried the ball 48 times for 151 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 13 receptions for 73 yards and 67 kickoff returns for 1,478 yards.

Stoikos was selected in the eighth round, 67th overall, by the B.C. Lions in the 2025 CFL Draft, but was released following training camp. The five-foot-11, 230-pound running back played in 28 games for his hometown University of Toronto from 2021 to 2024, registering 601 yards and six touchdowns on 111 carries. A two-time team MVP, he also played a role on special teams with 59 kickoff returns for 1,291 yards and three touchdowns.

In addition to the four-man event, Dearborn and Murray Lawrence will both participate in the men’s two-man competition, which runs on February 16 and 17.

Former CFL running back Jesse Lumsden, who played six seasons with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Edmonton Football Team, and Calgary Stampeders, is the high-performance director for Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton and will be in Italy as the team leader. He previously competed in the 2010, 2014, and 2018 Olympics for Canada.

Team Canada has won 10 Olympic bobsleigh medals since 1964, including five golds, two silver and three bronze.

The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina will open on Friday, February 6, and conclude on Sunday, February 22, with the men’s four-man bobsleigh being among the final medals awarded.