Brazil bids farewell to beloved soccer star Pele

SANTOS, Brazil – Emotional people bid farewell to Brazilian soccer legend Pele on Tuesday, January 3, in the streets of Santos to watch his coffin being carried to its final resting place from the city’s stadium where 230,000 mourners mourned. had entered the open casket.

Young and old embraced as the funeral procession made its way through the streets of the coastal town for hours, with some fans crying and others cheering and drumming for a national hero who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and most famous athletes at. modern history.

“It’s an irreparable loss for Brazil,” said newly inaugurated Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. “Pele, apart from being the best footballer in the world, is a humble and simple man.”

Pele died last week at the age of 82 after a year-long battle with colon cancer. He is buried in the city’s Ecumenical Memorial Necropolis, a 14-story vertical tomb with a view of Santos’ soccer field that made him a star.

Read: Pele dies after long battle with cancer and leaves world in mourning

Pele’s funeral procession has left the city’s Vila Belmiro stadium, home of Santos Football Club, on Tuesday morning. Pele played from 1956 to 1974 for the team, scoring over 1,000 goals. During the 24-hour vigil, fans lined up for hours to pay their respects, even overnight.

One of the most poignant moments on Tuesday was when a fire truck carrying a coffin stopped outside the home of Pele’s 100-year-old mother. The people there applauded and chanted “Pele is our king,” before a minute of silence.

Pele’s sister, Maria Lucia Nascimento, 78, watched in tears from a balcony and thanked the crowd in a brief TV interview.

Pele’s son, Edson Cholbi Nascimento, addressed the crowd at the cemetery as fireworks marked the arrival of the coffin and mourners sang Santos’ national anthem.

Read: Brazilian football legend Pele dies aged 82

“I want on behalf of the whole family to thank you for all the love, respect,” he said. “It is an honor, a great honor. Thank you once again. Now he will rest.”

Pele’s current tomb will be open to the public in seven days, the cemetery said.

On the streets of Santos, the city of 430,000 where Pele lived for the rest of his life, some are struggling to cope with the loss.

“I am still trying to solve this problem. No matter how much we prepare, we will not be ready to say goodbye,” said Pele fan Marcelo Caverna. “We are not only saying goodbye to our king, we are also saying goodbye to a genius, a legend of the Brazilian people.”

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

The stadium woke up

FIFA President Gianni Infantino was one of the first to arrive at the stadium on Monday, January 2, and said he would ask the world’s football associations to name the stadium after Pele, the only person to win the World Cup three times as a player. . .

Read: Final farewell to Pele, the ‘King’ of Brazilian football

A number of football stars attended, including former Brazilian midfielder Ze Roberto, who helped place Pele’s coffin in the middle of the pitch on Monday.

“Long live the king,” read a giant banner in the stadium.

Lula had been standing for about 30 minutes next to Pele’s coffin, wearing the Brazilian flag, in the middle of the football field and comforting members of Pele’s family.

Read: Death of Pele, ‘the man who stopped the world’: Who says what

Former soccer player Clodoaldo, who played with Pele at Santos and with the Brazilian national team told reporters, “I went to the people who were crying… and I kissed them all, like Pele was here. I’m sure that’s what he’s going to do. “

“I kissed each of his heads. It was Pele’s way of saying thank you for everything that happened today.

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