The 74-year old Pele, the only triple winner of soccer’s World Cup, is said to be in a stable condition, according to the statement released by the Israelita Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
He was admitted to the hospital on Monday to begin antibiotic treatments. Although it isn’t known when he will be released, he will continue the treatments at home.
During his earlier hospitalization, tests revealed that he had bladder, renal and ureteral calcifications or stones which lead to surgery two days later. He was last hospitalized in 2012, at the Albert Einstein hospital, to undergo total arthroplasty surgery on his right hip.
The surgery in mid-November forced him to cancel an event at the Pele Museum in Santos.
Pele won World Cups in 1958, 1962 and 1970. He was also named football player of the 20th century by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee (OIC).
According to Pele’s press officer, he has no plans to retire and will continue doing advertising and working with events as long as his health allows. He was a major part of the World Cup, hosted in Brazil, this year and has projects in the works for the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
During the last decade the soccer legend has suffered from many health problems. In addition to the kidney stones, he also had emergency eye surgery to reattach a detached retina and a hip replacement. This doesn’t seem to have slowed him down, in the last two years, he has signed endorsement contracts with Proctor & Gamble, Volkswagen AG, Swiss watchmaker Hublot SA and Emirates airlines.
When asked about his stamina in February, Pele said to Bloomberg, “I’m from a city called Three Hearts. So I am the man of three hearts.”
