Only last year, the football legend seemed all but finished. His weight ballooned and he grappled with cocaine addiction. How, then, did he reinvent himself as a trim TV star and political hero? It was the pinnacle of his football career. At Mexico's Azteca Stadium, Diego Maradona lifted the World Cup, having led Argentina to victory over West Germany in the 1986 final. More than that, his breathtaking performances during the tournament had seen him acclaimed the best player in the world. Reason enough for satisfaction, one might think. But for Maradona, it was also a vindication, a slap in the face for all those who had criticised the team, for the referees who failed to protect him, for the organisers who had scheduled matches in the heat of Mexico's midday sun, for the British because of the Falklands War ... the list was long. ... Last week, Maradona was again leading the chanting, although this time its target was more focused. President George W Bush was in Argentina for a Latin American summit on Friday, and at the head of thousands of anti-Bush protesters was the man voted, in a poll organised by football's world governing body, the greatest ever to kick a ball, in his new guise of political activist. Maradona had announced he would lead the protests during his own mini-summit with his friend, Fidel Castro, on his hugely popular television chat show. Castro, who is excluded from this weekend's meeting in the resort town of Mar del Plata, denounced the plans for an American free trade area and applauded Maradona's plans to take that message to the US President. 'You deserve a statue,' he said. 'We're very happy that you'll be there.' To seal the compact, Maradona showed a surprised Castro the portrait of him he had had tattooed on his leg.
It was the pinnacle of his football career. At Mexico's Azteca Stadium, Diego Maradona lifted the World Cup, having led Argentina to victory over West Germany in the 1986 final. More than that, his breathtaking performances during the tournament had seen him acclaimed the best player in the world. Reason enough for satisfaction, one might think.
But for Maradona, it was also a vindication, a slap in the face for all those who had criticised the team, for the referees who failed to protect him, for the organisers who had scheduled matches in the heat of Mexico's midday sun, for the British because of the Falklands War ... the list was long.
... Last week, Maradona was again leading the chanting, although this time its target was more focused. President George W Bush was in Argentina for a Latin American summit on Friday, and at the head of thousands of anti-Bush protesters was the man voted, in a poll organised by football's world governing body, the greatest ever to kick a ball, in his new guise of political activist.
Maradona had announced he would lead the protests during his own mini-summit with his friend, Fidel Castro, on his hugely popular television chat show. Castro, who is excluded from this weekend's meeting in the resort town of Mar del Plata, denounced the plans for an American free trade area and applauded Maradona's plans to take that message to the US President. 'You deserve a statue,' he said. 'We're very happy that you'll be there.'
To seal the compact, Maradona showed a surprised Castro the portrait of him he had had tattooed on his leg.
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