Bret Hart and members of the Hart family cut the ribbon on the Stu Hart Memorial Bridge in Calgary on Tuesday.
The new eastbound bridge on Highway 8, just west of Calgary, opened to traffic after the ceremony. It crosses the Elbow River and sits a few blocks from the Hart family home, where Stu Hart trained wrestlers in the basement known as “The Dungeon.”
Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen said the $28 million project came in “on time and on budget,” according to the Calgary Herald.
“The Hart family has done a tremendous job of putting Calgary on the map through wrestling,” Dreeshen said.
“He was very strong, very solid as a rock kind of guy,” Bret Hart said of his father. “I think it’s the perfect thing to name after my dad.”
Stu Hart’s granddaughter shared photos from the day on Instagram.
“Today, we celebrated the official opening and ribbon cutting of the Stu Hart Bridge honouring my grandpa and the incredible legacy he left behind,” she wrote. “My grandpa truly loved this city and was an incredibly proud Calgarian, and knowing that his name will forever be woven into the city he loved so much is truly something special.”
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The Province of Alberta named both Highway 8 bridges after Stu Hart in October 2025. The westbound bridge was already open, and the eastbound bridge completes the Highway 8 twinning project between the west Calgary ring road and Lott Creek Boulevard.
Stu Hart founded Stampede Wrestling in Calgary in 1948. The promotion aired in more than 50 countries and helped launch the careers of Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Davey Boy Smith, Dynamite Kid and Jim Neidhart. Stu Hart died on October 16, 2003.
