Since November 29, Pelé has been hospitalized in intensive care after being diagnosed with advanced colon cancer that has led to kidney and heart problems.
A month later, his death was announced, and Football fans regret the departure of the 1958, 1962 and 1970 world champions with Brazil.
On December 24, his family sent an emotional message via social media after accompanying the former soccer player to the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo.
“Merry Christmas. Gratitude, love, togetherness, family. The essence of Christmas. Thank you all for all the love and light you send us,” Pele’s daughter Kelly Cristina Nascimento wrote alongside a family photo.
But it should be remembered that the soccer star, Not only Brazilian, but worldwide he was married three times: Marcia Cibele, his last wife and the one who accompanied him to the end of his days.
His marriage to Cibele
In 2016, at the age of 75, Pelé married Marcia Cibele Aoki, a then 42-year-old Brazilian businesswoman of Japanese descent whom he had met in the 1980s New York elevator of a building in São Paulo in 2010. For the footballer, his relationship with Cibele was “love forever”.
However, the soccer star did point out that he met her through mutual friends in the ’80s. However, the businesswoman was married, but after their divorce, their love story began.
their marriages
In 1966 he married Rosemeri Cholbi, with whom he had three children: Kely Cristina (1967), Jennifer (1978) and Edinho (1970).
It was then that Pelé had another daughter, Flavia, in 1968, the result of an extramarital affair with journalist Lenita Kurtz.
Then, in 1975, the “official” family settled in New York due to the transfer of Pelé from Santos de São Paulo to the Cosmos; five years later, in the early 1980s, the couple divorced.
It should be noted that Pelé was an absentee father to the three children from his first marriage, as Edinho confirmed in a 2020 interview with Canal Football Club: “When I lived in the US, I had almost no contact with my father.”
Pelé’s second marriage was in 1994 to psychologist and gospel singer Assiria Lemos Seixas. Two years later they became parents to twins Joshua and Celeste, but after 13 years the couple separated.
Pele’s farewell
It is worth remembering the emotional message published on Pelé’s Instagram profile, which has more than 14 million followers.
“Inspiration and love shaped the journey of King Pelé, who passed away peacefully today. Throughout his journey, Edson charmed everyone with his brilliance in the sport.He ended a war, did social work around the world and spread what he believed most to be the cure for all our problems: love.”
“On his journey, Edson charmed the world with his genius in sports, ended a war, did community service around the world, and spread what he believed most to be the cure for all our troubles: Love. Your message today will become a legacy for future generations. Love, love and love forever‘ he concludes.
*With information from AFP