Brazil prepares to bury legend Pele in city he made famous
SANTOS, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian sports activities legend Pelé is being buried Tuesday, along with his nation of greater than 200 million folks and the world watching.
Newly inaugurated President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva paid his respects at Vila Belmiro, the stadium the place Pelé performed for many of his profession.
Pelé is being buried within the metropolis the place he grew up, turned well-known, and helped make into a world capital of his sport. Mass is being celebrated on the Vila Belmiro stadium earlier than the casket is ushered via the streets of Santos to a close-by cemetery.
Geovana Sarmento, 17, waited within the three-hour line to view his physique because it lay in repose. She got here together with her father, who was carrying a Brazil shirt with Pelé’s identify.
“I am not a Santos fan, neither is my father. But this guy invented Brazil’s national team. He made Santos stronger, he made it big, how could you not respect him? He is one of the greatest people ever, we needed to honor him,” she stated.
Caio Zalke, 35, an engineer, wore a Brazil shirt as he waited in line. “Pelé is the most important Brazilian of all time. He made the sport important for Brazil and he made Brazil important for the world,” he stated.
A notable absentee was Jair Bolsonaro, whose time period as president ended Dec. 31. A day earlier than, he departed capital Brasilia on a flight to Florida, shirking the ceremonial obligation of passing the presidential sash to Lula. Bolsonaro is staying in a condominium complicated outdoors Orlando and has been filmed chatting with neighbors.
In the Nineteen Sixties and 70s, Pelé was maybe the world’s most well-known athlete. He met presidents and queens, and in Nigeria a civil battle was placed on maintain to look at him play. Many Brazilians credit score him with placing the nation on the world stage for the primary time.
Rows of shirts with Pelé’s quantity 10 have been positioned behind one of many objectives, waving within the metropolis’s summer time winds. A bit of the stands was filling up with bouquets of flowers positioned by mourners and despatched by golf equipment and star gamers — Neymar and Ronaldo amongst them — from world wide as loudspeakers performed a tune named “Eu sou Pelé” (“I am Pelé”) that was recorded by the Brazilian himself.
The crowd was principally native, though some got here from distant. Many mourners have been too younger ever to have seen Pelé play. The temper was gentle, as folks filtered out of the stadium to native bars, carrying Santos FC and Brazil shirts.
Claudio Carrança, 32, a salesman, stated: “I never saw him play, but loving Pelé is a tradition that goes from father to son in Santos. I learned his history, saw his goals, and I see how Santos FC is important because he is important. I know some Santos fans have children supporting other teams. But that’s just because they never saw Pelé in action. If they had, they would feel this gratitude I feel now.”
Among these on the stadium was Pelé’s finest pal Manoel Maria, additionally a former Santos participant.
“If I had all the wealth in the world I would never be able to repay what this man did for me and my family,” Maria said. “He was as great a man as he was as a player; the best of all time. His legacy will outlive us all. And that can be seen in this long line with people of all ages here.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino advised journalists that each nation ought to identify a stadium after Pelé.
“I am here with a lot of emotion, sadness, but also with a smile because he gave us so many smiles,” Infantino stated. “As FIFA, we will pay a tribute to the ‘King’ and we ask the whole world to observe a minute of silence.”
Another fan and pal in line was Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes.
“It is a very sad moment, but we are now seeing the real meaning of this legendary player to our country,” Mendes advised journalists. “My office has shirts signed by Pelé, a picture of him as a goalkeeper, also signed by him. DVDs, photos, a big collection of him.”
Pelé had undergone therapy for colon most cancers since 2021. The medical middle the place he had been hospitalized stated he died of a number of organ failure on account of the most cancers.
Pelé led Brazil to World Cup titles in 1958, 1962 and 1970 and stays one of many staff’s all-time main scorers with 77 objectives. Neymar tied Pelé’s file throughout this 12 months’s World Cup in Qatar.
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