After one month in hospital, he lost a battle against a colon cancer

12/30/2022

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Pelé — Foto: Eraldo Peres/AP

The former soccer player Pelé died this Thursday, at 82 years old. The greatest soccer world idol was admitted to Albert Einstein Hospital, in São Paulo, on November 29, and his health condition worsened in recent days.

According to the hospital’s medical bulletin, “the death of Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pelé, on December 29, 2022, at 15h27, [happened] as a result of multiple organ failure, resulting from the progression of colon cancer associated with his previous clinical condition.

Pelé became a worldwide phenomenon long before globalization and the internet. Legendary ¬— and true — is the story that in 1969 opponents reached an agreement and interrupted the civil war in the Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) to watch Santos — his team for all his career in Brazil — play. The only condition for the truce was that Pelé would play in the two cities in dispute, Brazzaville and Kinshasa. Santos had scheduled only one friendly match. In the name of peace, they played two.

Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, in the Minas Gerais town of Três Corações in 1940, Pelé began his history with the ball when his parents moved to the countryside of São Paulo in 1946. His father, João Ramos do Nascimento, also a soccer player, signed a contract with Bauru Atlético Clube (BAC). In the dusty streets and dirt fields of Bauru, Dico, Pelé’s first nickname, tried out his first kicks.

A few steps, dribbles, and goals later, already converted into Pelé, he started playing for BAC’s youth team. He won the Bauru league twice (1954 and 1955). In 1956, the former Brazilian midfielder Waldemar de Britto saw Pelé play and convinced his father to take him to a big club.

At the age of 15, Pelé arrived alone at Santos, on the coast of São Paulo state. He won over the board of directors and signed his first contract. He would be a starter at Santos in 1957.

In the State Championship and Santos, Pelé emerged to the world. He won 26 important titles in 18 years at Santos, including two South American championships and the former Club World Cup (1962 and 1963). The complete collection, including summer tournaments, exceeds 40 trophies. His performance in the 1957 São Paulo Championship led him to be called for the Brazilian national team.

At the age of 16 years and eight months, he was, at the time, the youngest athlete to defend the main national team. In the 1958 World Cup, won by Brazil, he scored six goals, including one in the qualifying tournament against Wales (1-0), three in the semifinal against France (5-2), and two in the final, against Sweden, the host, a performance that earned him the title of “King”, awarded by the French press and fans.

In the 1962 World Cup, he was injured in the second match and left the task of victory to Amarildo and Garrincha. He reached his peak in the 1970 World Cup, in Mexico, when he led Brazil to win the third title. At the height of his fame and international recognition, he decided to leave the national team in 1972.

He was the first player to score a thousand goals in his career. He was also the most-awarded athlete in world soccer, with more than 60 career titles and 20 individual titles and honors. In 1981, he was elected the Athlete of the 20th Century by the French sports newspaper L’Equipe. In 2014 he received from Fifa in an honorary manner the Golden Ball, an award for the best player in the world.

After retiring from soccer, he acted in films and was a singer and songwriter. He married twice and had eight children.

In recent years, he has undergone two surgeries for hip replacements and corrective surgery on his spine. He also had kidney problems. A knee strike in the back permanently damaged one of his kidneys in 1974. The organ was removed. This led to health problems that culminated in repeated hospitalizations, the most serious in late 2018 in Paris.

In 2021, amid the Covid pandemic, he was diagnosed with cancer. The tumor started in his bowls, which were partially removed, but also reached his liver and lung.

*By Valor — São Paulo

Source: Valor International

https://valorinternational.globo.com/