GISELE BUNDCHEN – THE BRAZILIAN MODEL

Born July 20th, 1980, in Horizontina, Rio Grande de Sul, Brazil. Gisele is a supermodel beauty. Gisele, raised in Horizontina, a small town of less then 20,000 people located in the southern part of Brazil. With six daughters in the family, her five other sisters are all natural phenomenons. Raquel, Graziela, Gabriela, Patricia, and Rafaela are all aspiring models.

As a school girl, she was taunted with the nickname Olive Oil, the waif thin girl friend of Popeye the Sailor in cartoons.Bündchen, 14, is spotted by an Elite Modeling agent in a São Paulo McDonald’s. “They asked if I wanted to be a model, and I was like, ‘Forget it,'” she tells New York’s Daily News in 2004. “But in Brazil, people struggle, so I thought, ‘You know what? I should try this.'” She moves to New York in 1997, where she catches the eye of top photographers Mario Testino and Steven Meisel, who coax magazines and designers to take a chance on the teenager. “I was mesmerized by her,” Testino tells PEOPLE. While grabbing a Big Mac in a shopping mall, she was seen by a modeling agent who approached her and asked if she had any interest in becoming a model. Despite her father’s lack of approval of the career choice, he allowed her to move to Sao Paulo and she entered the Elite Look Modeling Competition, and her career took off.

Bündchen single-handedly ends the “heroin chic” era brought in by Kate Moss when fashion industry’s bible, Vogue, puts her on its cover. The magazine declares the “Return of the Sexy Model.” The Brazilian import is named Vogue/VH1 Model of the Year and by 2001, graces nine Vogue covers. Bündchen follows the likes of Tyra Banks and Heidi Klum when she signs with lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret. “I think guys like me because they like girls in lingerie,” she tells Time about her Victoria’s Secret work. “They like any girl in lingerie.”

Gisele has modeled for all the major fashion houses such as Ralph Lauren, Versace, Valentino and Chloe. She also has appeared on several magazine covers such as Vogue, Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar and Rolling Stone. Bündchen frolics on the shores of Malibu with actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The two remain coy about their relationship. “I don’t talk about my private life,” she tells New York’s Daily News. “The only thing I have to say is that I so appreciate [Leo].” They endure a rocky, nearly six-year, on-again, off-again relationship before calling it quits (for good) in November 2005. It may not be Vogue, but Bündchen graces the cover of Rolling Stone in a bikini. The magazine dubs the 20-year-old, “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World.” Time magazine says she’s “one of the few runway models whom straight men can name.”

Bündchen makes her acting debut opposite Queen Latifah and Jimmy Fallon in the box office disappointment Taxi. “It’s not Shakespeare, I’m not telling everyone I’m a serious actress, because that’s not who I am. I’m a model!” she tells New York’s Daily News of her role as Vanessa, a leader of a group of gorgeous bank robbers. After her split from DiCaprio, Bündchen is photographed surfing and cuddling with Pamela Anderson’s ex Kelly Slater on the sands of Hawaii’s Waikiki beach. The two tanned stunners are reportedly more than beach buddies. Bündchen appears in the film adaptation of The Devil Wears Prada despite reports that anyone involved would be banned from the pages of Vogue. She plays an editor opposite Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt.

Bündchen expresses her admiration for New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, 29, telling the Herald, “Definitely not too shabby. He’s pretty cute. All-American, that’s a good way to describe him.” The following month, Brady, who recently ended a three-year relationship with actress Bridget Moynahan – who later discovers she’s pregnant – begins dating the 26-year-old supermodel. After seven years as a Victoria’s Secret model, Bündchen, 26, parts ways with the lingerie giant. New York Post’s Page Six reports that Bündchen split with the company because it wouldn’t raise her $5 million-a-year salary and many speculate that she’s heading towards retirement. In 2004, she told Vanity Fair, “I would never want to be one of those girls who is 30, and modeling is all they know how to do. I want to do my best, and then I want to close the chapter on this job so I can look back and say this is what I did from 14 to 26, and then have another chapter.”

Bündchen tops Forbes’ list of the World’s Richest Models and earns $33 million in the past year. Kate Moss and Heidi Klum take second and third place respectively. “Some people start modeling because they want to be models and they want the parties and the recognition, and then there are people like me,” she tells Vanity Fair. “I come from a simple family, and for me getting into modeling was a chance to make money and create a business.” Dubbed “the globe’s reigning symbol of female perfection” by GQ, Bündchen appears on the magazine’s cover, where she discusses meeting boyfriend Tom Brady. “We met through a friend who knew us both for a long time,” she says. “Our friend knew that we would like each other. And we did. So I guess he was right.” Formerly with DiCaprio, the supermodel admits: “I’ve had my heart broken.” But of Brady, she says, “He really, genuinely doesn’t have a bad bone in his body.”

Gisele has recently signed a multimillion-dollar contract with North American lingerie firm, Victoria’s Secret. As a result, the Brazilian beauty will appear in several of their lingerie, beauty and hosiery campaigns for television and print, as well as in their point-of-sale materials. According to rumors that circulated amongst the fashion crowd during New York Fashion Week, Gisele will receive a cool 20 million US dollars for the job. Gisele currently lives in Los Angeles, an apartment in New York and a house out in the country in up-state New York. She has had her belly-button pierced and has a tattoo of a star drawn on the inside of her left wrist. It is nice to see that Gisele, albeit a young, rich and famous model, still maintains her naturalness and a down-to-earth personality.

Bündchen, 28, and Brady, 31, tie the knot in a small, private ceremony in Santa Monica. The couple exchange vows again at Bündchen’s Costa Rica home that April. Then in December, the newlyweds welcome their son Benjamin. “To be a mother is a magical experience,” she says. “It really is the miracle of life. I am really happy!”

Checkout the ASCII Art and Wallpapers of Gisele Bundchen in the below link. Please use Lucida Console font to view the art in Notepad. Before that in Notepad go to Format and Uncheck the Word Warp and then Go to Font and Reduce the Font Size to 3 to 4 pt. Use only Lucida Console Font.


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ALESSANDRO AMBROSIO – THE VICTORIA’S SECRET MODEL

Alessandra Ambrosio was born on April 11, 1981 in Erexim, Brazil. She is a famous Brazilian supermodel. Her modeling career started when she decided to take modeling lessons in Brazil. The course led to her participation in Elite’s Look of the Year contest in 1996, which eventually led to her contract with Elite Model Management.

Alessandra Ambrosio was part of the deluge of Brazilian models that emerged after Gisele Bundchen opened the floodgates. One of the star models of that group, of which fellow Victoria’s Secret Model (and best friend) Ana Beatriz Barros is a member, the 5’10”, light brown-haired Ambrosio accumulated quite a career in the late 1990’s into the next century. Ambrosio was born in Erechim, Brazil, a small town in the south. As an early teen, she enrolled in a modeling class and subsequently was entered in the Elite modeling agency’s 1996 Look of the Year competition. Though she did not win, she was offered an Elite contract one year after.

Her first modeling job was the cover of the Brazilian Marie Claire, and Ambrosio followed with other editorial work, but it was not long after that the Marcianos at Guess signed Ambrosio for their fall Millennium campaign in 2000. Her lucrative print career began with being a Guess? Girl and continued with deals with Revlon and Victoria’s Secret. Ambrosio walked the VS runway for the first time in 2000 and continued to be a fixture in subsequent shows. Ambrosio was also picked to be the spokesmodel for the 2004 Pink line by Victoria’s Secret.

As for fashion shows, Alessandra has walked the catwalks for designers such as Laura Biagiotti, Christian Lacroix, Byblos, Fendi, Issey Miyake, Kenzo, Christian Dior, Nicole Miller, and Oscar de la Renta, among others. Guess? wasn’t the only company to see Alessandra’s beauty. She also has contracts with Revlon cosmetics, Gap (as of late), and is set to appear in advertisements for Calvin Klein eyewear and Giorgio Armani. Those who caught the Victoria’s Secret fashion show in Cannes on the Internet may have noticed Alessandra in the show, among a cast of the lingerie line’s staples, Tyra Banks and Stephanie Seymour.

While the Brazilian beauty was once an Elite girl, she has switched agencies and is now represented by Marilyn Gaultier. Although her modeling career is on the rise, Alessandra plans to pursue a University degree. When she’s not modeling, she spends her time with her model/club promoter boyfriend of two and a half years, Jayson Lee (although she has been romantically linked to fellow model Marcelo Boldrini). She enjoys sandboarding and lounging on the beach listening to Brazilian music.

Her favorite place in the world still remains her tiny hometown, and having traveled the world has not convinced her otherwise. When not at her New York apartment or busy building a house in her native Brazil, Alessandra is leaving her mark around the world with International magazine covers, ad campaigns and big league designer fashion shows.

In a country that seems to breed beautiful women, there must be something in the Brazilian water. The most popular supermodel to come out of the South American country is Gisele Bundchen, but the long-legged beauty better watch her back with Alessandra Ambrosio well on her way.

Check out the sexy ASCII Art of Alessandra Ambrosio in the below Link. Follow the given steps to see the ASCII Art clearly in the Notepad. Please use Lucida Console font to view the art in Notepad. Before that in Notepad go to Format and Uncheck the Word Warp and then Go to Font and Reduce the Font Size to 3 to 4 pt. Use only Lucida Console Font.

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PELE – MOST PROLIFIC BRAZILIAN STRIKER

EARLY CAREER

Edson Arrantes de Nascimento by his full name, Pele was born in Tres Coracoes in Brazil, in a family that loved soccer, his father being himself a player for Fluminese (his father was known as Dondinho). In this sporty atmosphere, the young Pele learned to enjoy the game, despite the poverty he grew up in.

The family’s situation was even harder when his father had to quit playing soccer professionally due to a knee injury. Thus, for young Pele, soccer was what he regarded as the only way out of poverty and he started training daily, but since he had no money to buy a real ball, he used a stuffed sock instead.

After forming up a “shoeless team” with his street kids, Pele and his team participated in a youth tournament, with Pele ending up as top goalscoarer. He was immediately noticed by former Brazilian international Waldemar de Brito, who called him to the youth squad of Baquinho, whom he trained and, for the first time, offered Pele money to play soccer. During his year at the club’s youth team, Pele managed to win the championship after a dazzling performance: 148 goals in just 33 matches.

SANTOS

At just 15 years of age, Pele was bought by Brazil giants Santos, where he would later team up with some of Brazil’s finest players of that era and future World Cup winners, such as Zito, Pepe or Coutinho. Just one year later after he joined Santos, he became the youngest player to start in the Brazilian first division at age 16 and even more incredibly, he became league top scorer at the end of the season! Talk about starting with the right foot.

As it was not yet the era of Brazilian players running for European careers, Pele remained at Santos for almost 20 years, time in which he scored (read carefully) 1087 goals in 1120 matches. Even if you’re not that good at maths, I’m sure you can acknowledge that as an astonishing goal per match ratio.

1000TH GOAL

One of the milestones in the history of Pele was definitely his 1000th goal scored in all competitions. It was both a highly anticipated moment and an emotional one. On November 19th, 1969 Pele already had scored 999 goals in his career, either for Santos or Brazil’s national team. Playing on the Maracana Stadium, Brazil’s “cathedral of soccer”, against arch-rivals Vasco Da Gama, Pele managed to score from a penalty kick and broke all records standing in front of him.

NATIONAL TEAM & RECORDS

Throughout his 15 years spent at the Brazil national team, Pele managed to break hundreds of records, but we’ll just follow up on those that are deemed most important:

• He became the most prolific striker in Brazil’s history, with 77 goals in 92 matches.
• Pele, the footballer who used to shine shoes in order to raise money for a real soccer ball, scored 12 goals in different World Cup matches, being beaten only by Ronaldo.
• He is considered by FIFA the most prolific scorer in soccer history, with 1281 goals in 1363 matches in all competitions.
• He is the only player to have won three World Cups (gasp!), although he did not receive a medal for the one in 1962, since he was injured in the final (he played on several other matches throughout the campaign though)
• He is one of the few players to achieve the performance of scoring in two different World Cup finals, sharing this record with Paul Breitner, Vava and Zinedine Zidane.

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RONALDO – THE BRAZILIAN STRIKER

YOUTH CAREER

Ronaldo Luis Nazário de Lima was born on September 22, 1976 in Bento Ribeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Born in a poor neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, he started playing soccer on the streets, with the rest of his neighborhood friends. At age 14, he decided it’s time for a little organization in his life as a soccer player, so he went on to train with the Social Ramos Youth Club for one year. His next youth team, Sao Cristovao is where Ronaldo made a name for himself, being spotted by Brazilian World Cup winner Jairzinho as a future talent.

Jairzinho, who played for Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, recommended the young Ronaldo to the club and they signed him when he was 18 years old. His first and only season as a professional soccer player in Brazil was extremely successful, as he scored 12 goals in 13 games, quickly attracting the eyes of Europe.

PSV EINDHOVEN

The first club to spot Ronaldo and make Cruzeiro an offer was Dutch PSV Eindhoven. Admittedly, not one of the mammoths of Europe in terms of soccer, but nevertheless a powerful club where a young player like Ronaldo could hone his skills and get some experience in Europe. His 2 seasons at PSV were extremely successful, scoring 42 goals in 46 matches at just 21 years of age. His performances could not remain unnoticed and FC Barcelona moved in with a heavy offer to take the Brazilian on.

FC BARCELONA and INTERNAZIONALE MILANO

His only season with Barcelona would be one of the best of his career, scoring 47 goals in 49 matches in all competitions for Barca and helping the Catalan club win the UEFA Cup Winners Cup (He actually scored the winning goal in the final) and the Spanish Cup. This great season confirmed him as an outstanding player and a goal scoring machine and Internazionale Milano moved in to take the Brazilian to Italy.During the 5 seasons in Milan’s shirt, he managed to score 50 times, but his efficiency was a lot lower than for PSV or FC Barcelona, due to several problems.

First of all, the tough defensive air of the Italian Serie A reduced his ability to use his lethal dribbles as often as he could at FC Barcelona or PSV.His personal issues with his girlfriends and wife, as well as a string of injuries also kept him from being as prolific as before. Nevertheless, he was loved at Inter and he helped the Italian club win the UEFA Cup in 1998, which is actually his only trophy with the club. In 1997 however, he became the European Footballer of the Year, European Golden Boot and after the UEFA Cup success, he was named UEFA’s MVP that season.Still, in 2002 after no league titles with Inter, it was time to move on and Real Madrid took him on to form the so called “Galacticos” team of super stars.

REAL MADRID

For Ronaldo, Real Madrid was angel and devil alike. Used to the Spanish league and escaping the Italian one’s defensive toughness, he regained his scoring pace and in his 5 seasons with Real, he scored no less than 127 goals in 83 league games.He helped Real Madrid win the league twice, in 2002-2003 and 2006-2007, as well as the European Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup in 2002. Although he played well for Madrid, his past with FC Barcelona, his numerous injuries and news of him partying before and after matches, created a gap between the Brazilian striker and his fans. He also gained a few pounds, which decreased his stamina, speed and agility attracting the anger of Real’s supporters, after a poor 2005-2006 season. Not finding his pace at Real Madrid anymore, he decided to move back to Milan, but this time for Inter’s arch-rivals, AC Milano.

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RONALDINHO – THE LITTLE RONALDO

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira was born on the 21st of March, 1980 in Porto Alegre, capital of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. He was the youngest of three children born to Joao de Assis Moreira, a shipyard worker and Miguelina, a salesperson who used to sell cosmetics before studying to be a nurse. He shares his birthday with the legendary Ayrton Senna, who dominated F-1 before his untimely death in the early 90’s. Joao once played for Cruzeiro, and he encouraged both his sons to take an active interest in the beautiful game.

Joao’s second son was given the name of Ronaldinho in order to differentiate between himself and Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, also better known to the world as Ronaldo. Ronaldo himself was known as Ronaldinho when Ronaldo Guiaro was called Ronaldo, and at that time Ronaldinho also had the word Gaucho attached to his name. Ronaldinho is Portuguese for ”little Ronaldo”. Roberto Assis, Ronaldinho’s elder brother was a pretty good footballer himself. He played for Gremio under Luiz Felipe Scolari before injuries forced him out of the game at an early age. With his father, who had died when Ronaldinho was 8, having been a supporter of Gremio as well, it was but natural that Ronaldinho joined the club. He starred in Brazil’s first ever win at the U-17 Championships, held in Egypt in 1997. Ronaldinho made his first senior appearance for Gremio at the Copa Libertadores in 1998.Ronaldinho’s greatest assets have been his ball control, agility and trickery. He can dribble and pass like few people can, and defenders can feel like utter fools when they are up against him. He slowly made a name for himself at Gremio, and was inducted into the Brazilian team in 1999. He made his international debut against Latvia in June 1999, and was part of the Brazilian team which won the Copa America in the same year. He scored one goal in Brazil’s 7-0 thrashing of Venezuela in the group stages. He won both the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot at the 1999 Confederations Cup. He scored in every game Brazil played, and missed the final due to injury, where they lost to Mexico.

As the 21st century started, news of Ronaldinho’s abilities spread far and wide. Despite interest from England, he decided to move to France to join Paris St.Germain at the end of the 2001 season. He played alongside the likes of Jay Jay Okocha and Nicolas Anelka at PSG under manager Luis Fernandez. The 2002 World Cup firmly established Ronaldinho as a man destined for great things. His goal knocked England out at the quarterfinal stage – a freekick from the right which was completely misjudged by opposition goalkeeper David Seaman. Brazil went on to beat Germany in the final, and clubs started queueing up for the playmaker. With PSG not winning trophies in Europe, he had to make a move to further his career. Although Manchester United and FC Barcelona were both interested in his services, he transferred to the Catalans for a fee of £21 million.

The move to Barcelona was a very significant one in terms of the power shift in the world of football. Barcelona was in a mini crisis period, outshone domestically by bitter rivals Real Madrid. New president Joan Laporta had promised to bring in changes at the club, and the signing of Ronaldinho from PSG on a 5 year contract was one of those. Laporta had initially wanted to bring in David Beckham, who snubbed the Catalans and moved to the Bernabeu. He was another player in the list of famous R’s to play for Barcelona – Romario, Ronaldo and Rivaldo had also played before at the Nou Camp. The success of his childhood idols in Spain might have been one reason why he decided to join the club.Ronaldinho first played in a Barca jersey against AC Milan in America, scoring the second goal for the Catalans. He helped Barcelona to a second place in the league in the 2003-2004 season, despite being injured for most part of the first half.

Ronaldinho epitomises the way the beautiful game should be played. Along with Deco, Samuel Etoo, Ludovic Giuly and Lionel Messi, he transformed Barcelona into a supremely gifted attacking side.There is probably no limit to Ronaldinho’s skills. The ability to play comes to him naturally, and the ball looks alive when at his feet- something similar to magic for extremely gifted magicians, you could say. He virtually conjured a goal out of nowhere, toe punting the goal past a stunned Chelsea defence and Petr Cech in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. To toe punt is an extremely difficult thing to do, and requires extreme accuracy. It was therefore no surprise that when Ronaldinho made his move, the rest of the players just stood where they were and watched awestruck.

Barcelona won the La Liga twice in a row, in 2005 and 2006. They also won the Spanish cup in those two years, and also added the Champions League to their trophy cabinet by beating Arsenal in May 2006. Ronaldinho had a part in everything good that happened at the club. Although the 2006 World Cup campaign was a disappointment for him and the national side, there is no doubt that Ronaldinho will want to have another shot in the next edition to be held in South Africa. Good things, as they say, do not last. Somewhere down the line, the dream marriage between Barcelona and Ronaldinho started developing cracks. Ronaldinho was accused of not being fit, and indeed, when we saw him without his shirt at the end of a La Liga game, he was not certainly the lean athlete he had been earlier. Ronaldinho’s desire to enjoy Barcelona’s night life was not appreciated by Frank Riijkard, and his form started dipping. Barcelona lost out on the 2006-07 and 2007-08 La Liga titles to bitter rivals Real Madrid. The 2007-08 season saw Ronaldinho troubled by injuries, and for the first time in December 2007, against Espanyol, he did not start despite being fully fit.

From winning the FIFA World Player twice, Ronaldinho had to be content with a fifth placed finish in 2007. He was not called up for for the 2007 Copa America by new coach Dunga, which Brazil won by beating Argentina.In April 2008, Ronaldinho tore a muscle in his right leg and missed the rest of Barcelona’s season, including their Champions League semifinal against Manchester United. Rumours flew thick and fast about his future, and Manchester City, Inter Milan and A.C.Milan were among the clubs interested. He was eventually sold to AC Milan for 21 million euros, and took the No.80 jersey as Clarence Seedorf already had the No.10 jersey at the San Siro.He has shown glimpses of his former abilities at Milan, and scored his first goal for the Rossoneri in the city derby against Inter in September 2008.

Apart from his individual abilities, his mere presence on the field instills a new level of confidence in his teammates, and the opposition mentally loses the game even before it has started. It is amazing what one man can do, and words are not enough to describe the man that Ronnie is. He is part of Pele’s list of ”125 Greatest living footballers”. In a survey conducted by a Brazilian magazine, he was also inducted into the Gremio all time favourite team. Ronaldinho has a son Joao, named after his late father. The boy’s mother is Janaina Mendes.

With his trademark grin and supreme control with the ball, Ronaldinho is easily one of the biggest brands in the footballing world today. He graced the covers of EA Sports’ FIFA 2007. Some have even gone on to call him the best player in history, but the man himself shrugs off such comparisons. Modesty is a virtue rarely seen in a man of such ability, and Ronaldinho possesses tons of that quality. He sometimes gives the impression of being in another world altogether with the football – on another plane if I should say, but is still very down to earth. One thing is pretty sure – he will be a legend when he leaves the game.

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ROBINHO – THE BRAZILIAN PEARL

Robson de Souza (born January 25, 1984 in Sao Vicente, Brazil), nicknamed Robinho (Little Robson), is a Brazilian footballer currently playing for Real Madrid and the Brazilian national team. Robinho has earned praise for his expert use of the pedalada and field speed. He is widely regarded as one of the best young players in the world.

Born in Parque Bitaru, a poor neighborhood of Sao Vicente, Robinho took to playing football when he had little other. At six, Robinho was taken on by Beira-Mar, a local escolinha, and they took the championship in his first year. Robinho was claimed to look just like his teammate Marcelo, the spanish fans called them “the two twins”.

In 1993, at the age of nine, Robinho drew attention by scoring 73 goals for the Portuerios futsal team. Robinho joined the Santos youth program, at the time was overseen by Brazilian football legend Pele. Pele brought Robinho into the Santos FC youth dorms, where Robinho received his first regular schedule of three meals a day.

In 2002, Robinho graduated to the Santos first team. His work at the front helped them win the Brazilian National Championships in 2002 and 2004, as well as place second to Boca Juniors in the 2003 Copa Libertadores. Robinho’s contributions to Santos attracted a great deal of attention from the top European football clubs. A world class player that looks to be on the verge of a European move.

Robinho’s skill drew the offers of several European clubs, but it took the kidnapping of his mother in late 2004 to convince him to leave. On July 31, 2005, Robinho signed with Real Madrid for five years at $30 million and joined his fellow Brazilian internationals Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos and Jalio Baptista. He made his La Liga debut on August 28 in a 2-1 victory against Cadiz as a second half substitute for Thomas Gravesen. In his first season, Robinho scored eight goals, but the arrival of Josa Antonio Reyes has brought the length of Robinho’s stay into question. One of his most recent performances though, in the “El Clesico” against Barcelona, which he earned the Man of the Match award may have impressed Fabio Capello. It has been reported that on 12th February Robinho may be allowed to leave Real Madrid for a fee of $30 million at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Robinho backed again that decision saying he’d like to prove himself that he is capable of impressing his coach and teammates.

NATIONAL TEAM

In 2003, Robinho was called up to join the prestigious ranks of the Brazilian national football team. His first international appearance came in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup final, where despite his team’s loss, Robinho displayed his talent on the international stage.

Robinho played in each game of the 2006 FIFA World Cup group stage, but only started in the final game against Japan. Many fans say he should be on the starting lineup, but his small size is a disadvantage when playing against bigger players. However, whenever he had the playing chance he showed impressive signs and managed to dribble past even the world class defenders.

MEDIA COVERAGE

Like many talented young Brazilian footballers, Robinho has been compared to his nation’s great players by both fans and the sports media. Robinho’s footwork and mercurial speed has many believing that he can carry on the mantle of Pele, Garrincha and Romario in Brazilian football.

As of late, fans have also begun to foment a potential rivalry between Robinho and Argentinian striker Lionel Messi, who has been hailed as a wonderkid in football, and therefore a natural counterpart to Robinho. Contrasts between the two include the fact that they each represent rival Latin American football powerhouses (Brazil and Argentina) they play opposite each other in the premiere rival clubs of La Liga (Robinho for Real Madrid and Messi for FC Barcelona) and interestingly, there are the comparisons to the greatest living footballers in the world (Messi has been hailed by Argentinian fans and media as “the new Maradona” and Robinho with Pele). He has never gone on record to say his club football desires, yet there has been speculation that he would like to go to either Italy or England in the future.

Robinho also shares the same birthday as the legendary Portuguese football player, Eusebio. In February, 2007, Robinho was quoted as saying “Reports that I’d move to Tottenham are wide of the mark. If I had to leave Real, I’d choose to join another a big club. I don’t regard Tottenham Hotspur as a big club.”

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KAKA – THE BRAZILIAN MIDFIELDER

Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (born April 22, 1982 in Brasília, Brazil), simply known as Kaká, is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Brazil and the Serie A club A.C. Milan. He is one of the budding young stars in world football.

FAMILY

Kaká’s younger brother Rodrigo Izecson Dos Santos Leite, known as Digão, followed in his brother’s footsteps and is currently on loan with Serie B team Rimini, after having spent some time in the AC Milan youth squad.

NICKNAME

The nickname Kaká, from his native Portuguese, is pronounced as it is spelt. The accent would signify that the stress is on the second syllable. In Italian, the language of his current team, the phonetic equivalent is written as Kakà, which is used for Italian television graphics. However, the player’s shirt name is spelt KAKA’ (with an apostrophe, rather than an accented ‘A’) for both Brazil and Milan.  An internet discussion forum explains the nickname as a commonly used shortened form of “Ricardo” in Portuguese. Kaká is supposed to have got his nickname because his little brother Rodrigo could not pronounce the word “Ricardo” when they were young. Rodrigo called his older brother “Caca\ Kaká suffered an accident when he made a faulty jump off a diving-board, resulting in a vertebra fracture. This could have meant the end of his football career, but he believes that Jesus allowed him to recover and become the successful footballer he is now. When AC Milan won the Serie A title in 2004, Ricky, as he is called by his team-mates, sported a shirt with an “I Belong to Jesus” slogan. He also points his fingers to the sky as a sign of thanks every time he scores, for apparently the same reason.

MARRIAGE

Kaká married Caroline Celico on 23 December 2005 at the evangelical Reborn in Christ Church in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in a wedding attended by fellow players from his national team, as well as other well known international players. Guests included Ronaldo, Adriano, Cafu, Dida, Julio Baptista and Brazilian national coach Carlos Alberto Parreira. Caroline and Kaká first met in 2002, and started dating soon after. The relationship survived Kaká’s move from Sao Paulo to Italy in 2003, while Caroline was still at school. It is likely that Caroline will stay in Brazil in the short-run, but the couple plan to live together in Italy very soon.

Checkout the ASCII Art of Kaka in the below link. Please use Lucida Console font to view the art in Notepad. Before that in Notepad go to Format and Uncheck the Word Warp and then Go to Font and Reduce the Font Size to 3 to 4 pt. Use only Lucida Console Font.

http://www.4shared.com/document/dvygl67D/Kaka_ASCII.html

LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA – THE 35th PRESIDENT OF BRAZIL

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, born on October 27, 1945, commonly referred to simply as “Lula”, is a Brazilian politician. He was elected President of Brazil in 2002, and re-elected in 2006. He is a liberal politician who often adopts centrist positions. He has been a very effective president, avoiding scandals and allowing Brazilian industry to prosper while taking steps towards combating Brazil’s legendary poverty.

EARLY LIFE

Lula was born in October, 1945 to poor parents in the town of Caetes, Pernambuco, but soon moved to a coastal city in São Paulo province. There was little time or money for young Lula to get an education, and he was working in the streets as a shoeshine boy and street vendor before he was in his teens. He was a hard worker and soon found full-time work in Sao Paulo’s booming automotive industry.

UNIONIZER

In the 1960’s and 1970’s, there was a lot of work in the industrial factories of Sao Paulo, but little in the way of worker’s rights. Lula became very involved in the movement to unionize the workers, and due to his natural leadership he rose quickly in the ranks of the union leadership. In the 1970’s he led several strikes, and was jailed for a while. In 1978 he was elected head of a steel-workers union. He became convinced that the true path to fair treatment for workers was not through unions and strikes, but through political power.

WORKER’S PARTY

In 1980, Lula became one of the founding members of the Partido dos Trabalhadores (“Party of the Workers,” known in Brazil by its initials PT). Lula was its first president. Brazil was at the time under a right-wing military dictatorship and organizing unions and political parties could have been very dangerous for Lula and his companions. The Party was not formally recognized by the Brazilian Electoral court until 1982. The PT was very popular with the working class and its growing political clout helped restore democracy to Brazil in the late 1980’s.

LULA’S EARLY POLITICAL CAREER

Lula first ran for office in 1982, for a seat in the São Paulo Province legislature, but lost. In 1986 he was elected to Congress, and by the time a new constitution was needed in the late 1980’s, the PT was powerful enough to demand a seat at the table to influence its provisions. Although the PT helped create the constitution, they refused to ratify the final result, as they felt it did not do enough to ensure workers’ rights. Lula ran for president in 1989, 1994 and 1998. He lost all three elections, although many believe that he only lost due to election fraud.

PRESIDENCY

Lula continued to run for president and finally won in 2002. Although many feared that Lula would immediately implement radical socialistic reforms and perhaps even default on some of Brazil’s debt, he has proven to be a progressive moderate, preferring slow but steady social change. He quickly identified some very real and serious problems in his country and attacked them directly and effectively. One example is his campaign against malnutrition. Under this program, the poorest Brazilian families get food aid, but only if their children stay in school. He has also efficiently managed the Brazilian economy, managing steady growth without making any drastic reforms, while still paying off foreign debts and funding badly-needed social programs.

Internationally, he has not become the ranting demagogue that many feared, instead perfecting the role of respected statesman. He has become a very important figure in Latin American politics, as he has taken great pains to be friendly with other nations. Lula’s Brazil is a leader in Latin American diplomacy: for example, Lula has sent a peacekeeping, humanitarian mission to Haiti on his own initiative.

He is a very forward-thinking leader, and under his administration Brazil has become a leader in the worldwide search for biofuels and clean energy. In December of 2008, Newsweek magazine named him the 18th most influential person in the world.

Lula will leave office in 2011 and has already announced that he will not seek to change the constitution to allow him to run for a third term as many other South American politicians have done.

Checkout the ASCII Art of Lula da Silva in the below link. Please use Lucida Console font to view the art in Notepad. Before that in Notepad go to Format and Uncheck the Word Warp and then Go to Font and Reduce the Font Size to 3 to 4 pt. Use only Lucida Console Font.

http://www.4shared.com/document/onRJI3_Z/Luiz_Incio_Lula_da_Silva.html