Dear Editor,
My initial intention was to share some observations via this letter that were made at the Upper Demerara Football Association season opening that was held in November gone.
As fate would have it I picked up a DVD that was out of its case on a table to see what it was about so that I could replace it in its rightful casing.
It was one of those many stories about “Pele” which I had come by for some time now but never took the time to view, so I decided to let it run a bit just to . . . you know, see how it goes. Well dear reader that “run a bit” was to the end. I was awakened to something beautiful which before I never knew; a documentary on world football great “King Pele”. The man was indeed a football superstar–extraordinaire. He was versatile and had taken part in many sporting disciplines: shot-put, javelin, high-jump in which he is on record as clearing 6 feet, hurdles, sprints, clocking the 100 meters in eleven seconds; he performed excellently at all. He trained hard, practised almost non-stop, his skill and ability was awesome, he was indeed a most consummate athlete – fit as a fiddle, always at the ready and in fine form; remarkable, dedicated, confident, very humble and affable.
But it was football which he gravitated to and made his dominance felt, it was God’s gift to him which he in turn gave to the world.
He knew his inborn passion, his athleticism and resolved to reach the pinnacle, and that exactly he became – soccer supremo. The brother was unmatched.
He made his impact upon the world stage at the age of 17, creating a web of crafty moves with his speed, dexterity and perennial fierce shots to goal that often drained his opponents while mesmerising and delighting spectators. And so it was that he became “signed sealed delivered” to the world forever – “King Pele”.
Pele epitomises the adage “The heights of great men were not attained by sudden flight . . . . . “, though he was a natural and an inspiration, his was a discipline, dedication and 90% perspiration. His greatness, superstardom, popularity and admiration were well earned as he grew to become an icon and ambassador of the game of football.
Of course, there were other great outstanding personalities par-excellence with admirable exploits and many more will sure follow as night follows day and their greatness will continue to adorn the history pages of world sports. But this here is not about them, it is about the King of soccer whose feats hitherto have not been surpassed and whose place in the pantheon of football has already been set aside to be indelibly etched.
I’ll say again, the man was made for the game!
Yours faithfully
Frank Fyffe
