Title
Photo: Pelé plays tennis on campus
Date
1984
Decade
1980s
Notes
Borrowed from Michael Atalay's Facebook post:
"In the summer of 1984, the legendary soccer superstar Pelé held a soccer camp on the campus of St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, DE. Although my high school soccer career was rather pedestrian, I had just graduated from St. Andrew’s and was giddy at the opportunity to meet the King, so I drove up from my home in VA.
When I arrived on campus, Pelé was playing tennis with two of my teachers and a friend of his from Caracas. And on the court with this quartet—quite shockingly for me—was nobody. No photographers, no media, no parents…just them. And now me. A teacher promptly called me over and introduced us. Pelé could not have been kinder, more approachable, or more engaging. He was everything you would want from a global ambassador of his stature. It’s no wonder he was—and still is— loved by so many millions around the world.
When one of the teachers mentioned during this break in action that he was quite a good tennis player for having just picked up the sport, he replied in broken English “I have good coach. You may know him—Bjorn Borg.”
As a highlight of highlights, he invited me to play with him and the coaches during a scrimmage. On the pitch with the King. Unforgettable."
"In the summer of 1984, the legendary soccer superstar Pelé held a soccer camp on the campus of St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, DE. Although my high school soccer career was rather pedestrian, I had just graduated from St. Andrew’s and was giddy at the opportunity to meet the King, so I drove up from my home in VA.
When I arrived on campus, Pelé was playing tennis with two of my teachers and a friend of his from Caracas. And on the court with this quartet—quite shockingly for me—was nobody. No photographers, no media, no parents…just them. And now me. A teacher promptly called me over and introduced us. Pelé could not have been kinder, more approachable, or more engaging. He was everything you would want from a global ambassador of his stature. It’s no wonder he was—and still is— loved by so many millions around the world.
When one of the teachers mentioned during this break in action that he was quite a good tennis player for having just picked up the sport, he replied in broken English “I have good coach. You may know him—Bjorn Borg.”
As a highlight of highlights, he invited me to play with him and the coaches during a scrimmage. On the pitch with the King. Unforgettable."
