[한국강사신문 한상형 기자] Russian President Vladimir Putin also mourned the death of the ‘soccer emperor’ Pele (Brazil) and honored the deceased’s achievements.
According to AFP and TASS News Agency on the 30th (Korean time), the Russian Kremlin Palace said that President Putin sent a condolence message to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who was regarding to retire, expressing deep condolences to Pele, who passed away that day.
According to reports, President Putin praised “Idson Aranchis do Nacimento (Pele’s real name) was an outstanding son of the Brazilian people.” It has become the favorite sport of millions of people around the world.”
“I was fortunate enough to meet and speak personally with this great man,” he added. “I will forever cherish the best memories of him.”
Pele met President Putin in December 2017 when he visited Moscow, Russia, to attend the draw for the 2018 World Cup finals.
Pele, who is regarded as the best player in world soccer history, winning three World Cup titles as the only player in history, died at the age of 82 in a hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil on the morning of the 30th following battling colon cancer.
Pele appealed to President Putin in June of this year to stop the war with Ukraine.
On the day Ukraine played the 2022 Qatar World Cup European Qualifying Playoff Scotland, he posted an open letter to President Putin on his social network service (SNS), saying, “Today, Ukraine will try to forget the tragedy that is happening in its country, even if it is just for 90 minutes. “Please stop the invasion of Ukraine. There is no legitimate reason for the violence to continue,” he stressed.
Referring to his past relationship with President Putin at the time, Pele also added, “Your hands, with whom we met in Moscow in 2017, laughed and shook hands for a long time, have the power to stop this situation.”
However, in the end, Pele left for the heavenly ground without hearing the news of the end of the war.
