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Obituaries

Soccer legend Pele dies at 82, drawing global tributes

Brazilian star rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest athletes

Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, was the only man to win the World Cup three times as a player.   © Reuters

SAO PAULO (Reuters) -- Pele, the legendary Brazilian soccer player who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died on Thursday at the age of 82.

Sao Paulo's Albert Einstein hospital, where Pele was undergoing treatment, said he died at 3:27 p.m. "due to multiple organ failures resulting from the progression of colon cancer associated with his previous medical condition."

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