Ronaldo, New Emperor of Soccer

Considering his talent and glorious accomplishments so far, Ronaldo deserves to win Player of the Year. But his road to his second winning of the award was full of difficulties. In 1995 when he was 19, Ronaldo got a severe injury on his knee. Again in 1998, he got another injury on his knee, and received a surgery, which "crippled" him for 4 years to come. Then early this year, he came back, and won the award for the second time. Previously in 1997, he had won it. In short, his successful comeback is a real human drama.

Ronaldo was born in 1976 in a slum located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was a gift of God to his poor family. In 1988 when he was only 12, he joined a pro club. Then in 1993, he signed up a contract with a top-notch soccer club in Brazil, and scored 58 in 60 games only for that year.

When he was just 17 years and 6 months old, or in March of 1994, he played for the first time in an A-match between Brazil and Argentina. In the following 66 A-matches, he has recorded 47 goals, putting himself as a striker next only to Pele. In 1994, he got traded to PSV Eindhoven in Netherlands. Then, he played with a couple of teams including Barcelona (96-97) and Milan (97-Aug. of 2002) before he`s got settled down with Real Madrid for more than $40 million.

FIFA`s Player of the Year, 2002, which was determined based on the votes of national team coaches of 148 countries, Ronaldo got 387 points and won the award, leaving behind Oliver Khan (171 pts.) who won the MVP of 2002 Korea/Japan World Cup.

Only 6 months after his comeback this year, he played in the 2002 World Cup, and led his team to its 5th championship with 8 goals. In addition to the FIFA`s award, Ronaldo has also won Player of Europe (or Golden Ball) and the MVP offered by prestigious media companies like BBC and The World Soccer. In total, Ronaldo has won 5 awards so far this year.

Ronaldo commented, "I owe what I am to my medical team who have dedicated themselves to curing and helping me come back. I really thank them."

In the meanwhile, co-hosts of the 2002 World Cup, Korea and Japan, won the Fair Play Award, and Hong Myong-bo received the Bronze Ball, which was determined at the end of the World Cup.

In addition, US star player Ham was selected the best female player, and Brazil won Team of the Year, while Senegal was recognized for its advancement.

stt77@donga.com