ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Four-time Iditarod champion and cancer survivor Lance Mackey has dropped out of next years nearly 1,000-mile race for health reasons, organizers said Monday.Mackey said in an email to the Iditarod Trail Committee that his withdrawal from the 2017 race across Alaska came with hopes to take better care of his health so he can be ready to compete again in 2018, marshal Mark Nordman told The Associated Press.The email was sent Sept. 21, but the employee who handles that correspondence was out, and Mackey was officially withdrawn Monday, the same day the committee announced the withdrawal, Nordman said.Mackey has continued to struggle with hand circulation problems that were partly blamed for him scratching from this years race.Hell be missed for sure, Nordman said of Mackeys decision to sit out the next race.Mackey could not immediately be reached for comment.Mackey was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2001 and underwent extensive surgery as well as radiation treatment.After returning to the sport, he went on to become the only musher ever to win both the Iditarod and the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race in the same year. Its a feat he has accomplished twice.With Mackey opting out, just four current and former champions are signed up for next years Iditarod.Part of Mackeys huge appeal along the trail likely has as much to do with his outsized personality as his past wins.Nordman noted the musher is a crowd favorite at village checkpoints along the trail and has also amassed a huge fan base.Hes got that upbeat attitude, Nordman said. But he realizes in order to take care of his dogs, hes got to have his health.---Follow Rachel DOro at https://twitter.com/rdoro---This story has been corrected to say Mackey scratched from the Iditarod this year, not last year Philadelphia Phillies Shirts . Bryant, who signed a five-year, $34 million contract as a free agent with Cleveland in March, reported symptoms on Monday morning, a team spokesman said. Cheap Phillies Jerseys . But Bourque, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, wont be in the lineup when the Habs travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Wednesday. https://www.cheapphilliesjerseys.us/ . DAmigo scored twice in regulation and added the shootout winner as the Toronto Marlies edged the San Antonio Rampage 5-4 in American Hockey League action. Philadelphia Phillies Store . Vettel, who has already clinched his fourth straight F1 title, enters the finale with a chance to equal Michael Schumachers 13 victories in a year and match the record of nine consecutive wins by Alberto Ascari in the 1952 and 1953 seasons. Phillies Jerseys 2020 . John Lucas, signed as a mentor for rookie Trey Burke, showed he can score if required, scoring 12 points of his 16 points in the second quarter as Utah built an 18-point lead. Patrick Dangerfield has dedicated his AFL Brownlow Medal to fellow Geelong great Paul Couch in an emotional tribute.The Cats midfielder polled a record 35 votes, with Sydney onballer Luke Parker nine back in second.Dangerfield came to Monday nights count with mixed emotions, knowing he was the overwhelming favourite, but still angry about their preliminary final loss to the Swans last Friday night.He said a touching tribute to Couch midway through the evening helped him realise the enormity of what it would mean to win his first Brownlow.Couch, the 1989 Brownlow winner, died on March 5 of a heart attack.His former teammates Andrew Bews, Tim McGrath, Tim Darcy and Barry Stoneham spoke about Couch in a recorded segment during the Brownlow telecast.Cough was Geelongs fourth Brownlow winner and Dangerfield is now their seventh.Ultimately, as footballers, team success is the most important thing, Dangerfield said in his acceptance speech.But I think halfway through the count, when Paul Couch was replayed and the conversations around hhow Paul contributed to the game, it hit me what it would be like to be a Brownlow Medallists.ddddddddddddSo Couchy, this one is for you mate.Dangerfield was under intense pressure when he left Adelaide at the end of last season and went to Geelong under free agency.But his game went to another level and he formed an outstanding midfield combination with Cats captain Joel Selwood, to the point they are now nicknamed Dangerwood.Dangerfield thanked Adelaide for giving him his AFL start and thanked Geelong for helping him improve even further.I dont think any individual that ever stands up here, stands up here just because of themselves, he said.It is a collaborative effort from previously Adelaide and now Geelong.(Playing at Geelong) has been a recipe for success and a recipe for enjoyment.Dangerfields tally of 35 beat by one the previous Brownlow votes record, set by Collingwood star Dane Swan in 2011. ' ' '