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Rediff.com  » Sports » Tchau, Senhor Pele!

Tchau, Senhor Pele!

Last updated on: January 04, 2023 13:51 IST
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Pele

IMAGE: The casket bearing Pelé is transported by the fire department, from his former club Santos' Vila Belmiro stadium. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

Emotional crowds bid soccer legend Pelé a final farewell on Tuesday, January 3, 2023, lining the streets of Santos to watch his coffin taken to its final resting place from the city's stadium where 230,000 mourners had filed past his open casket.

Pele

IMAGE: Thousands of fans lined the streets in the Brazilian city of Santos to view Pelé’s funeral procession. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

Young and old embraced as the funeral procession wound its way through the coastal city's streets for hours, with some fans in tears and others cheering and drumming for a national hero who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history.

Pele

IMAGE: Pelé's coffin was carried through the streets of Santos, including the street where Pelé's 100-year-old mother Celeste Arantes lives. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

"It's an irreparable loss for Brazil," said Brazil's newly sworn-in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. "Pelé, in addition to being the best soccer player in the world, was a humble, simple, man."

Pelé died last week at the age of 82 after battling colon cancer for a year. He was laid to rest at the city's Ecumenical Memorial Necropolis, a 14-storey vertical cemetery with views of the soccer field in Santos that made him a star.

Pele

IMAGE: People of all ages flocked to his 24-hour public wake. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

Pelé's funeral procession had left the city's Vila Belmiro stadium, home of the Santos Football Club, on Tuesday morning. Pelé played from 1956 to 1974 for the team, scoring more than 1,000 goals. During a 24-hour wake fans queued for hours to pay their respects, even overnight.

One of Tuesday's most moving moments came when the firetruck bearing his coffin halted outside the home of Pelé's 100-year-old mother. Crowds there applauded and chanted "Pelé is our king," before holding a minute's silence.

Pele

IMAGE: Former player Ze Roberto and Pelé’s son Edinho carry the casket to the centre circle at his club Santos' Vila Belmiro stadium. Photograph:Diego Vara/Reuters

Pelé's sister Maria Lucia Nascimento, 78, watched in tears from a balcony and thanked the crowds in a brief TV interview.

Pelé's son Edson Cholbi Nascimento addressed the crowd by the cemetery as fireworks greeted the arrival of the coffin and mourners sang the Santos anthem.

"I wanted on behalf of the whole family to thank you for all the love, the respect," he said. "It's an honour, it's a great pride. Once again thank you. Now he will rest."

Pele

IMAGE: Pelé's widow Marcia Cibele Aoki alongside her husband's casket. Photograph: Diego Vara/Reuters

The mausoleum where Pelé now lies will be open to the public within seven days, the cemetery said.

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IMAGE: A mourner reacts as Pelé's casket is transported by the fire department from his former club Santos' Vila Belmiro stadium. Photograph: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters

On the streets of Santos, the city of 430,000 where Pelé lived for most of his life, some struggled to come to terms with his loss.

"I'm still trying to get my head around this. No matter how much we prepare, we are never ready for the farewell," said Marcelo Caverna. "We are not just saying goodbye to our king, we are saying goodbye to a genius, a legend of the Brazilian people."

Pele

IMAGE: More than 230,000 people, many wearing Brazil's iconic yellow jersey, attended the wake, according to Santos. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

"You can see that the whole city has stopped. The whole world stopped," said mourner Ezequias Leonardo.

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IMAGE: Members of the National Guard are pictured as the casket is transported. Photograph: Amanda Perobelli/Reuters

FIFA President Gianni Infantino was one of the first to attend the stadium wake on Monday and said he would ask football associations around the world to name a stadium after Pelé, the only man to win the World Cup three times as a player.

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IMAGE: Mourners queue to pay their respects. Photograph: Ricardo Moraes/Reuters

Some soccer stars attended the wake, including former Brazil midfielder Ze Roberto, who helped place Pelé's coffin in the centre of the field on Monday.

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IMAGE: Mourners lined the streets. Photograph: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters

'Long Live The King', read a giant banner inside the stadium.

Lula had stood for about 30 minutes next to Pelé's casket, draped with a Brazilian flag, in the centre of the soccer field and he comforted Pelé's family members.

Former soccer player Clodoaldo, who played alongside Pelé at Santos and with the Brazilian national team. told reporters, "I went to the mourners... and I kissed them all, as if Pelé’ was here. I am sure that's what he would do."

Pele

IMAGE: People pose for a picture with a photograph of the legend. Photograph: Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters

"I kissed each one of them on the head. It's a way for Pelé to give thanks for all that is happening today."

 
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