Vice President Pence will travel to Houston to watch the Super Bowl
- Pence will be fourth sitting vice president to attend the big game in person
- Bush is scheduled to conduct the ceremonial coin flip before the game
- Super Bowl 51 pits the New England Patriots against the Atlanta Falcons
- Game to be played this Sunday at NRG Stadium in Houston
Vice President Mike Pence (above) will be among the lucky tens of thousands of football fans who will watch the Super Bowl in person on Sunday
Vice President Mike Pence will be among the lucky tens of thousands of football fans who will watch the Super Bowl in person on Sunday.
Pence will board Air Force Two and depart for Houston, Texas, on Sunday to catch the highly anticipated showdown between the New England Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons at NRG Stadium.
Pence will be the fourth sitting vice president to see the game in person, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The previous vice presidents to attend were Al Gore (1994); George HW Bush (1982); and Spiro Agnew (1971).
Bush will be on hand to conduct the ceremonial pregame coin toss.
The 41st president tweeted his excitement Wednesday at being asked to perform the coin toss alongside his wife, former first lady Barbara Bush.
'Getting fired up for Sunday', the former President wrote alongside a GIF animation of a coin spinning around on his presidential desk.
'I approached President Bush and Mrs. Bush back in December and they were very enthusiastic about wanting to participate,' NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a news conference on Wednesday afternoon.
The appearance marks an impressive turnaround for the 92-year-old Houston native after both he and his wife were recently hospitalized.
Former President George HW Bush (left) and his wife, Barbara (right), will be on hand to conduct the ceremonial pregame coin toss. They are seen in this January 23, 2017, file photo during the former president's recovery from illness at Houston Methodist Hospital
Bush tweeted the above gif of the coin flipping on Wednesday. The 41st president said he was 'fired up' to take part in the pregame ceremony
'Both of them had a few setbacks healthwise recently,' said Goodell. 'But we have heard from both of them and they're excited and anxious to be here. So, like I said, we're honored to have them.'
Bush was released from Houston Methodist Hospital on Monday morning after receiving treatment for pneumonia for more than two weeks.
His wife, Barbara, the former First Lady spent five days at the same hospital for treatment of bronchitis. Mrs Bush was released a week earlier.
Bush was also present for the 2002 Super Bowl coin toss ahead of the New England Patriots taking on the St. Louis Rams.
Bush has attended previous Super Bowls. He is seen above on the right during the coin toss before Super Bowl 36 in New Orleans on February 3, 2002. Former NFL quarterback Roger Staubach (left) tossed the coin as referee Bernie Kukar (center) and Bush look on
Bush was admitted to hospital after experiencing breathing difficulties on January 14, and his treatment included a stay in intensive care, inserting a breathing tube and connecting him to a ventilator.
He is now doing much better and son George W. Bush said he was 'thrilled' his father was 'home and well', after the elder Bush was released from the Houston hospital on Monday.
During the news of Bush's hospitalization, several wished the two good health and a speedy recovery on social media.
Among the well-wishers were President Donald Trump, Senator John McCain, Ellen DeGeneres and former President Bill Clinton.
Former Presidents Bush (second from left) and Bill Clinton meet with some of the officiating crew before Super Bowl 39 in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2005
Bush and Clinton are seen on the field prior to Super Bowl 39 in Jacksonville
Bush, who served as president from 1989 to 1993, has a form of Parkinson's disease and uses a motorized scooter or a wheelchair for mobility.
He was hospitalized in 2015 in Maine after falling at his summer home and breaking a bone in his neck.
He was also hospitalized in Houston the previous December for about a week for shortness of breath. He spent Christmas 2012 in intensive care for a bronchitis-related cough and other issues.
Despite his loss of mobility, Bush celebrated his 90th birthday by making a tandem parachute jump in Kennebunkport, Maine.
Last summer, Bush led a group of 40 wounded warriors on a fishing trip at the helm of his speedboat, three days after his 92nd birthday celebration.
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