Abedi Pele
ONE OF Africa’s all-time football greats, Abedi ‘Pele’ Ayew of Ghana, will be the special guest on this week’s edition of African Voices, CNN International’s 30- minute magazine programme sponsored by Globacom.
It explained that Abedi Pele’s choice as special guest is in line with the philosophy of the programme to showcase successful personalities who are shaping the African continent in different fields of endeavour.
Born on November 5, 1964, Abedi Pele is a former Ghana international football player and captain.
He was given the nickname ‘Pelé’ in recognition of his superior football skills that evoked comparisons to Brazilian football legend Pelé.
He found fame in France’s Ligue 1 with Lille OSC and Olympique Marseille.
Abedi Pele was one of the pioneers of African football in Europe.
Abedi Pele, one of the first great African players to make an impact on European club football, played for teams in Switzerland, Germany and Italy.
But it was in France that he found fame and was instrumental in Marseille’s prominence in the European Champions League during theearly 1990s.
Amongst his international accolades, he was often included in FIFA “All-star” selections and captained the African all-stars in their victory over their European counterparts in the Meridian Cup of 1997.
He played for Ghana 73 times, and is considered the greatest football player in his country’s history, and among the best in Africa.
He is the top goal scorer for Ghana’s Black Stars in its 50-year footballing history with 33 goals.
He was a fixture in the African Championships of the 1980s and 90s with his national team, and a member of
Ghana’s victorious team in the 1982 African Cup of Nations, but he never had an opportunity to play in the FIFA World Cup,
Among the silverware he won were UEFA Champions League in 1993, European Cup Finalist medal in 1990–91, French Ligue 1 winner: 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, African Cup of Nations Winner 1982 and African Footballer of the Year in 1991,1992,1993.
He was also awarded the “Order of the Volta” (Civil division), which is the highest Ghana National award.
This week on African Voices, Abedi Pele invites viewers to his home and reminisces with CNN’s correspondent
Vladimir Duthiers on some of his most memorable moments both on and off the pitch.
The 30-minute magazine programme will be broadcast on Friday at 8.30am with repeat broadcast on Saturday at 3.30 pm and on Sunday at 9 am and 6.30 pm.
There will be further repeats at 10.30am and 5.30 pm on Monday and at 5.30 am on Tuesday.
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