Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend, is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the greatest athlete of the 20th century. He died Thursday at the age of 82.
Pelé had been hospitalized since December for a “reevaluation of the chemotherapeutic therapeutic treatment of a tumor.” He had previously fought against colon cancer, according to the hospital.
He was Brazil’s all-time leading scorer and helped his national team win three World Cup championships in 1958, 1962, and 1970. Though the total number of goals scored by the Brazilian legend is disputed, the official number on record is 757 including the goals he had with the national team and club team goals with Santos FC and American club New York Cosmos.
Pelé is referred to as the “King of Football,” he was born on October 23, 1940, in Três Corações, Brazil. His birth name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento. The nickname Pelé came about when he mispronounced the name of Bilé, who was a teammate of his father. The nickname stuck when his classmates began calling him that.
“My friends, I want to keep everyone calm and positive,” Pelé wrote in a recent Instagram post. “I’m strong, with a lot of hope and I follow my treatment as usual … I have a lot of faith in God and every message of love I receive from you all over the world keeps me full of energy.”
Pelé started playing for Santos FC at age 15 and his country’s national team at 16. He remains the youngest player ever to score a goal in a World Cup, at age 17 in the 1958 competition.
Pelé retired from soccer in 1977 and was awarded the International Peace Award, the International Olympic Committee’s Athlete of the Century, and one of Time’s 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century. From 1995 to 1998, Pelé served as Brazil’s Minister of Sports.
Pelé is survived by his wife of six years and seven children.
