Lance Armstrong planned on being the biggest athlete in Wisconsin state news Tuesday.
But the surprising news of Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre’s retirement after 17 years in the National Football League easily overshadowed Armstrong, who was in Madison to push for a statewide smoking ban.
Both Armstrong and Gov. Jim Doyle took time out of a big rally at Monona Terrace Tuesday to honor the future NFL Hall of Famer.
?If people said to me, ‘Who are the athletes you respect the most,’ I would tell you that I respect Andre Agassi and Brett Favre the most,? Armstrong said. ?They were guys that played through pain, played through misery, played through all these other sacrifices and consequences of their sport.?
Armstrong, who won seven straight Tour de France titles and has always supported the Dallas Cowboys, said he respects Favre and Agassi for their endurance in their sports.
?I understand what those guys play through, so I respect them on that level,? he said.
Armstrong added he respects Favre for being an ?Ironman? as the only quarterback to start for the Packers since 1992, and for he and his wife Deanna coming out and publicly sharing their battle against Deanna’s breast cancer.
?People can be very private and say, ?I don’t want to talk about this, I want to keep it a secret and I want to fight this with my friends and family and my close community,?? Armstrong said. ?But they were public, and that’s the thing we always look for in the fight against cancer is people who want to be public cancer survivors.?
Armstrong, who said he does not know the Favres well but has met Brett on a few occasions, called the couple ?heroes.?
Doyle interrupted pushing one of his top priorities in the smoking ban Tuesday to honor one of the state’s biggest icons.
?Obviously there is probably no professional athlete in America who is more associated with one state than Brett Favre is with the state of Wisconsin,? Doyle said. ?We in the state have had the great privilege of watching for the last 16 years the greatest quarterback in the world.?
The governor said despite all the attention and fanfare Favre receives, the state still cannot appreciate the work he put in every year.
Despite being a native of Mississippi, Doyle said Favre epitomizes the values Wisconsin residents share.
?[Favre exemplified] showing up every day, working at it as hard as you possibly can, giving it everything you have, excelling, being spectacularly successful, but occasionally goofing it up a little and never pointing the finger at anyone else, always taking responsibility,? Doyle said.
He added he hopes the Favre family will continue to have a presence and contribute to the state’s charitable organizations they have supported the last 16 years.
?It’s a lot easier to govern this state when the Packers are winning than when they are losing,? Doyle said, thanking Favre for everything he gave to the Packers.
A slew of other state officials from across the state reacted to the news of Favre’s retirement Tuesday.
?Brett gave us a Super Bowl victory, three MVP awards, and 16 years of unforgettable moments that Packer fans will never get tired of talking about,? U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., said in a statement. ?We?re all incredibly thankful for Brett?s Hall of Fame career and his contributions both on and off the field. He is without a doubt the greatest quarterback ever to play the game.?
Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmitt said he wishes Favre well in retirement.
?As any Packer fan will tell you, it was Brett Favre who put the ?title? back in Titletown, U.S.A.,? Schmitt said in a statement. ?For nearly two decades, Brett has embodied the outstanding character, enthusiasm, ability and hard work of Wisconsin citizens, and I am honored to have worked side-by-side with him and his family on community and charitable efforts.?
But as Favre-o-mania dominated state news coverage Tuesday, Armstrong, trying to garner media attention pushing a big political issue, had just one wish.
?I wish he would have waited until tomorrow,? Armstrong said.
