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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Pele will not attend Fridays opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics because of poor health, denying Brazilians a chance to celebrate their greatest sports figure.The 75-year-old soccer great said this week he had been invited to light the cauldron, though that was not confirmed by Rio organizers.Im not physically able to attend the opening of the Olympics, Pele said in a statement on Friday.Pele had hip surgery recently and often walks with a cane. His absence -- in any role -- will be a huge disappointment to fans and organizers. He is easily Brazils most recognizable athlete -- or former athlete -- though he stopped playing almost 40 years ago.Only God is more important than my health, he wrote. In my life Ive had fractures, surgeries, pain, hospital stays, victories and defeats. And Ive always respected those who admire me.He said pulling out was my own decision.Peles role in the opening ceremony has never been clear. He had said earlier that a commitment to a sponsor would force him to travel the day of the ceremony.If I manage to change (the travel plans), I would like to have the honor to light it, he said.In statement, Pele apologized for disappointing Brazilians and said as a Brazilian, I ask God to bless all who participate in this event.He signed the statement Edson Arantes do Nascimento -- Pele. Air Max 720 Sale . The defence is doing its part, too. Drew Brees threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half and the guys on the other side made sure that was enough, sending the Saints to a 17-13 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night. Air Max 720 Ireland . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. http://www.cheapairmax720ireland.com/ .J. Jefferson has been charged with assaulting his girlfriend. Cheap Air Max 720 . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Air Max 720 Cheap Wholesale . Goals from Jerome Boateng, Franck Ribery and Thomas Mueller extended Bayerns unbeaten run to a record 37 matches. "This record is incredible," Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said. Greeny and Golic welcome Monday Night Footballs Jon Gruden (7 a.m. ET) and His & Hers Jemele Hill and Michael Smith (8:00) to the show on Wednesday.Get in touch with Mike & Mike by emailing (mikeandmike@espnradio.com) or tweeting (@MikeAndMike) the guyys -- we will be with you from 6-10 a.ddddddddddddm. ET. Follow all of the action on ESPN2, ESPN Radio and ESPNRadio.com. ' ' '