title: Viet Cong

text: The Viet Cong was an armed communist organization in South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. It fought under the direction of North Vietnam against the South Vietnamese and United States governments during the Vietnam War. It had both guerrilla and regular army units, as well as a network of cadres who organized peasants in the territory the Viet Cong controlled. During the war, communist fighters and anti-war activists claimed that the Viet Cong was an insurgency indigenous to the South, while the U.S. and South Vietnamese governments portrayed the group as a tool of North Vietnam. According to Trần Văn Trà, the Viet Cong's top commander, and the post-war Vietnamese government's official history, the Viet Cong followed orders from Hanoi and were part of the People's Army of Vietnam, or North Vietnamese army.


title: Viet Cong

text: North Vietnam established the Viet Cong on December 20, 1960, at Tân Lập village in Tây Ninh Province to foment insurgency in the South. Many of the Viet Cong's core members were volunteer "regroupees", southern Viet Minh who had resettled in the North after the Geneva Accord (1954). Hanoi gave the regroupees military training and sent them back to the South along the Ho Chi Minh trail in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The Viet Cong called for the unification of Vietnam and the overthrow of the American backed South Vietnamese government. The Viet Cong's best-known action was the Tet Offensive, an assault on more than 100 South Vietnamese urban centers in 1968, including an attack on the U.S. embassy in Saigon. The offensive riveted the attention of the world's media for weeks, but also overextended the Viet Cong. Later communist offensives were conducted predominantly by the North Vietnamese. The organization officially merged with the Fatherland Front of Vietnam on February 4, 1977, after North and South Vietnam were officially unified under a communist government.


title: Viet Cong

text: The term "Việt Cộng" appeared in Saigon newspapers beginning in 1956. It is a contraction of (Vietnamese communist), The earliest citation for "Viet Cong" in English is from 1957. American soldiers referred to the Viet Cong as Victor Charlie or V-C. "Victor" and "Charlie" are both letters in the NATO phonetic alphabet. "Charlie" referred to communist forces in general, both Viet Cong and North Vietnamese.


title: Viet Cong

text: The official Vietnamese history gives the group's name as the Liberation Army of South Vietnam or the National Liberation Front for South Vietnam (NLFSV; "Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng miền Nam Việt Nam"). Many writers shorten this to National Liberation Front (NLF). In 1969, the Viet Cong created the "Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam" ("Chính Phủ Cách Mạng Lâm Thời Cộng Hòa Miền Nam Việt Nam"), abbreviated PRG. Although the NLF was not officially abolished until 1977, the Viet Cong no longer used the name after the PRG was created. Members generally referred to the Viet Cong as "the Front" ("Mặt trận"). Today's Vietnamese media most frequently refers to the group as the "Liberation Army of South Vietnam" ("Quân Giải phóng Miền Nam Việt Nam") .


title: Viet Cong

text: By the terms of the Geneva Accord (1954), which ended the Indochina War, France and the Viet Minh agreed to a truce and to a separation of forces. The Viet Minh had become the government of North Vietnam, and military forces of the communists regrouped there. Military forces of the non-communists regrouped in South Vietnam, which became a separate state. Elections on reunification were scheduled for July 1956. A divided Vietnam angered Vietnamese nationalists, but it made the country less of a threat to China. Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai negotiated the terms of the ceasefire with France and then imposed them on the Viet Minh.


title: Viet Cong

text: About 90,000 Viet Minh were evacuated to the North while 5,000 to 10,000 cadre remained in the South, most of them with orders to refocus on political activity and agitation. The Saigon-Cholon Peace Committee, the first Viet Cong front, was founded in 1954 to provide leadership for this group. Other front names used by the Viet Cong in the 1950s implied that members were fighting for religious causes, for example, "Executive Committee of the Fatherland Front", which suggested affiliation with the Hòa Hảo sect, or "Vietnam-Cambodia Buddhist Association". Front groups were favored by the Viet Cong to such an extent that its real leadership remained shadowy until long after the war was over, prompting the expression "the faceless Viet Cong".


title: Viet Cong

text: Led by Ngô Đình Diệm, South Vietnam refused to sign the Geneva Accord. Arguing that a free election was impossible under the conditions that existed in communist-held territory, Diệm announced in July 1955 that the scheduled election on reunification would not be held. After subduing the Bình Xuyên organized crime gang in the Battle for Saigon in 1955, and the Hòa Hảo and other militant religious sects in early 1956, Diệm turned his attention to the Viet Cong. Within a few months, the Viet Cong had been driven into remote swamps. The success of this campaign inspired U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower to dub Diệm the "miracle man" when he visited the U.S. in May 1957. France withdrew its last soldiers from Vietnam in April 1956.


title: Viet Cong

text: In March 1956, southern communist leader Lê Duẩn presented a plan to revive the insurgency entitled "The Road to the South" to the other members of the Politburo in Hanoi. He argued adamantly that war with the United States was necessary to achieve unification. But as China and the Soviets both opposed confrontation at this time, Lê Duẩn's plan was rejected and communists in the South were ordered to limit themselves to economic struggle. Leadership divided into a "North first", or pro-Beijing, faction led by Trường Chinh, and a "South first" faction led by Lê Duẩn.


title: Viet Cong

text: As the Sino-Soviet split widened in the following months, Hanoi began to play the two communist giants off against each other. The North Vietnamese leadership approved tentative measures to revive the southern insurgency in December 1956. Lê Duẩn's blueprint for revolution in the South was approved in principle, but implementation was conditional on winning international support and on modernizing the army, which was expected to take at least until 1959. President Hồ Chí Minh stressed that violence was still a last resort. Nguyễn Hữu Xuyên was assigned military command in the South, replacing Lê Duẩn, who was appointed North Vietnam's acting party boss. This represented a loss of power for Hồ, who preferred the more moderate Võ Nguyên Giáp, who was defense minister.


title: Viet Cong

text: An assassination campaign, referred to as "extermination of traitors" or "armed propaganda" in communist literature, began in April 1957. Tales of sensational murder and mayhem soon crowded the headlines. Seventeen civilians were killed by machine gun fire at a bar in Châu Đốc in July and in September a district chief was killed with his entire family on a main highway in broad daylight. In October 1957, a series of bombs exploded in Saigon and left 13 Americans wounded.


title: Viet Cong

text: In a speech given on September 2, 1957, Hồ reiterated the "North first" line of economic struggle. The launch of Sputnik in October boosted Soviet confidence and led to a reassessment of policy regarding Indochina, long treated as a Chinese sphere of influence. In November, Hồ traveled to Moscow with Lê Duẩn and gained approval for a more militant line. In early 1958, Lê Duẩn met with the leaders of "Inter-zone V" (northern South Vietnam) and ordered the establishment of patrols and safe areas to provide logistical support for activity in the Mekong Delta and in urban areas. In June 1958, the Viet Cong created a command structure for the eastern Mekong Delta. French scholar Bernard Fall published an influential article in July 1958 which analyzed the pattern of rising violence and concluded that a new war had begun.


title: Viet Cong

text: The Communist Party of Vietnam approved a "people's war" on the South at a session in January 1959 and this decision was confirmed by the Politburo in March. In May 1959, Group 559 was established to maintain and upgrade the Ho Chi Minh trail, at this time a six-month mountain trek through Laos. About 500 of the "regroupees" of 1954 were sent south on the trail during its first year of operation. The first arms delivery via the trail, a few dozen rifles, was completed in August 1959.


title: Viet Cong

text: Two regional command centers were merged to create the Central Office for South Vietnam ("Trung ương Cục miền Nam"), a unified communist party headquarters for the South. COSVN was initially located in Tây Ninh Province near the Cambodian border. On July 8, the Viet Cong killed two U.S. military advisors at Biên Hòa, the first American dead of the Vietnam War. The "2d Liberation Battalion" ambushed two companies of South Vietnamese soldiers in September 1959, the first large unit military action of the war. This was considered the beginning of the "armed struggle" in communist accounts. A series of uprisings beginning in the Mekong Delta province of Bến Tre in January 1960 created "liberated zones", models of Viet Cong-style government. Propagandists celebrated their creation of battalions of "long-hair troops" (women). The fiery declarations of 1959 were followed by a lull while Hanoi focused on events in Laos (1960–61). Moscow favored reducing international tensions in 1960, as it was election year for the U.S. presidency. Despite this, 1960 was a year of unrest in South Vietnam, with pro-democracy demonstrations inspired by the South Korean student uprising that year and a failed military coup in November.


title: Viet Cong

text: To counter the accusation that North Vietnam was violating the Geneva Accord, the independence of the Viet Cong was stressed in communist propaganda. The Viet Cong created the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam in December 1960 at Tân Lập village in Tây Ninh as a "united front", or political branch intended to encourage the participation of non-communists. The group's formation was announced by Radio Hanoi and its ten-point manifesto called for, "overthrow the disguised colonial regime of the imperialists and the dictatorial administration, and to form a national and democratic coalition administration." Thọ, a lawyer and the Viet Cong's "neutralist" chairman, was an isolated figure among cadres and soldiers. South Vietnam's Law 10/59, approved in May 1959, authorized the death penalty for crimes "against the security of the state" and featured prominently in Viet Cong propaganda. Violence between the Viet Cong and government forces soon increased drastically from 180 clashes in January 1960 to 545 clashes in September.


title: Viet Cong

text: By 1960, the Sino-Soviet split was a public rivalry, making China more supportive of Hanoi's war effort. For Chinese leader Mao Zedong, aid to North Vietnam was a way to enhance his "anti-imperialist" credentials for both domestic and international audiences. About 40,000 communist soldiers infiltrated the South in 1961–63. The Viet Cong grew rapidly; an estimated 300,000 members were enrolled in "liberation associations" (affiliated groups) by early 1962. The ratio of Viet Cong to government soldiers jumped from 1:10 in 1961 to 1:5 a year later.


title: Viet Cong

text: The level of violence in the South jumped dramatically in the fall of 1961, from 50 guerrilla attacks in September to 150 in October. U.S. President John F. Kennedy decided in November 1961 to substantially increase American military aid to South Vietnam. The arrived in Saigon with 35 helicopters in December 1961. By mid-1962, there were 12,000 U.S. military advisors in Vietnam. The "special war" and "strategic hamlets" policies allowed Saigon to push back in 1962, but in 1963 the Viet Cong regained the military initiative. The Viet Cong won its first military victory against South Vietnamese forces at Ấp Bắc in January 1963.


title: Viet Cong

text: A landmark party meeting was held in December 1963, shortly after a military coup in Saigon in which Diệm was assassinated. North Vietnamese leaders debated the issue of "quick victory" vs "protracted war" (guerrilla warfare). After this meeting, the communist side geared up for a maximum military effort and the troop strength of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) increased from 174,000 at the end of 1963 to 300,000 in 1964. The Soviets cut aid in 1964 as an expression of annoyance with Hanoi's ties to China. Even as Hanoi embraced China's international line, it continued to follow the Soviet model of reliance on technical specialists and bureaucratic management, as opposed to mass mobilization. The winter of 1964–1965 was a high-water mark for the Viet Cong, with the Saigon government on the verge of collapse. Soviet aid soared following a visit to Hanoi by Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin in February 1965. Hanoi was soon receiving up-to-date surface-to-air missiles. The U.S. would have 200,000 soldiers in South Vietnam by the end of the year.


title: Viet Cong

text: In January 1966, Australian troops uncovered a tunnel complex which had been used by COSVN. Six thousand documents were captured, revealing the inner workings of the Viet Cong. COSVN retreated to Mimot in Cambodia. As a result of an agreement with the Cambodian government made in 1966, weapons for the Viet Cong were shipped to the Cambodian port of Sihanoukville and then trucked to Viet Cong bases near the border along the "Sihanouk Trail", which replaced the Ho Chi Minh Trail.


title: Viet Cong

text: Many Liberation Army of South Vietnam units operated at night, and employed terror as a standard tactic. Rice procured at gunpoint sustained the Viet Cong. Squads were assigned monthly assassination quotas. Government employees, especially village and district heads, were the most common targets. But there were a wide variety of targets, including clinics and medical personnel. Notable Viet Cong atrocities include the massacre of over 3,000 unarmed civilians at Huế, 48 killed in the bombing of My Canh floating restaurant in Saigon in June 1965 and a massacre of 252 Montagnards in the village of Đắk Sơn in December 1967 using flamethrowers. Viet Cong death squads assassinated at least 37,000 civilians in South Vietnam; the real figure was far higher since the data mostly cover 1967–72. They also waged a mass murder campaign against civilian hamlets and refugee camps; in the peak war years, nearly a third of all civilian deaths were the result of Viet Cong atrocities. Ami Pedahzur has written that "the overall volume and lethality of Vietcong terrorism rivals or exceeds all but a handful of terrorist campaigns waged over the last third of the twentieth century".


title: Viet Cong

text: Major reversals in 1966 and 1967, as well as the growing American presence in Vietnam, inspired Hanoi to consult its allies and reassess strategy in April 1967. While Beijing urged a fight to the finish, Moscow suggested a negotiated settlement. Convinced that 1968 could be the last chance for decisive victory, General Nguyễn Chí Thanh, suggested an all-out offensive against urban centers. He submitted a plan to Hanoi in May 1967. After Thanh's death in July, Giáp was assigned to implement this plan, now known as the Tet Offensive. The Parrot's Beak, an area in Cambodia only 30 miles from Saigon, was prepared as a base of operations. Funeral processions were used to smuggle weapons into Saigon. Viet Cong entered the cities concealed among civilians returning home for Tết. The U.S. and South Vietnamese expected that an announced seven-day truce would be observed during Vietnam's main holiday.


title: Viet Cong

text: At this point, there were about 500,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam, as well as 900,000 allied forces. General William Westmoreland, the U.S. commander, received reports of heavy troop movements and understood that an offensive was being planned, but his attention was focused on Khe Sanh, a remote U.S. base near the DMZ. In January and February 1968, some 80,000 Viet Cong struck more than 100 towns with orders to "crack the sky" and "shake the Earth." The offensive included a commando raid on the U.S. Embassy in Saigon and a massacre at Huế of about 3,500 residents. House-to-house fighting between Viet Cong and South Vietnamese Rangers left much of Cholon, a section of Saigon, in ruins. The Viet Cong used any available tactic to demoralize and intimidate the population, including the assassination of South Vietnamese commanders. A photo by Eddie Adams showing the summary execution of a Viet Cong in Saigon on February 1 became a symbol of the brutality of the war. In an influential broadcast on February 27, newsman Walter Cronkite stated that the war was a "stalemate" and could be ended only by negotiation.


title: Viet Cong

text: The offensive was undertaken in the hope of triggering a general uprising, but urban Vietnamese did not respond as the Viet Cong anticipated. About 75,000 communist soldiers were killed or wounded, according to Trần Văn Trà, commander of the "B-2" district, which consisted of southern South Vietnam. "We did not base ourselves on scientific calculation or a careful weighing of all factors, but...on an illusion based on our subjective desires", Trà concluded. Earle G. Wheeler, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, estimated that Tet resulted in 40,000 communist dead (compared to about 10,600 U.S. and South Vietnamese dead). "It is a major irony of the Vietnam War that our propaganda transformed this debacle into a brilliant victory. The truth was that Tet cost us half our forces. Our losses were so immense that we were unable to replace them with new recruits", said PRG Justice Minister Trương Như Tảng. Tet had a profound psychological impact because South Vietnamese cities were otherwise safe areas during the war. U.S. President Lyndon Johnson and Westmoreland argued that panicky news coverage gave the public the unfair perception that America had been defeated.


title: Viet Cong

text: Aside from some districts in the Mekong Delta, the Viet Cong failed to create a governing apparatus in South Vietnam following Tet, according to an assessment of captured documents by the U.S. CIA. The breakup of larger Viet Cong units increased the effectiveness of the CIA's Phoenix Program (1967–72), which targeted individual leaders, as well as the Chiêu Hồi Program, which encouraged defections. By the end of 1969, there was little communist-held territory, or "liberated zones", in South Vietnam, according to the official communist military history. There were no predominantly southern units left and 70 percent of communist troops in the South were northerners.


title: Viet Cong

text: The Viet Cong created an urban front in 1968 called the Alliance of National, Democratic, and Peace Forces. The group's manifesto called for an independent, non-aligned South Vietnam and stated that "national reunification cannot be achieved overnight." In June 1969, the alliance merged with the Viet Cong to form a "Provisional Revolutionary Government" (PRG).


title: Viet Cong

text: The Tet Offensive increased American public discontent with participation in the Vietnam War and led the U.S. to gradually withdraw combat forces and to shift responsibility to the South Vietnamese, a process called Vietnamization. Pushed into Cambodia, the Viet Cong could no longer draw South Vietnamese recruits. In May 1968, Trường Chinh urged "protracted war" in a speech that was published prominently in the official media, so the fortunes of his "North first" fraction may have revived at this time. COSVN rejected this view as "lacking resolution and absolute determination." The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968 led to intense Sino-Soviet tension and to the withdrawal of Chinese forces from North Vietnam. Beginning in February 1970, Lê Duẩn's prominence in the official media increased, suggesting that he was again top leader and had regained the upper hand in his longstanding rivalry with Trường Chinh. After the overthrow of Prince Sihanouk in March 1970, the Viet Cong faced a hostile Cambodian government which authorized a U.S. offensive against its bases in April. However, the capture of the Plain of Jars and other territory in Laos, as well as five provinces in northeastern Cambodia, allowed the North Vietnamese to reopen the Ho Chi Minh trail. Although 1970 was a much better year for the Viet Cong than 1969, it would never again be more than an adjunct to the PAVN. The 1972 Easter Offensive was a direct North Vietnamese attack across the DMZ between North and South. Despite the Paris Peace Accords, signed by all parties in January 1973, fighting continued. In March, Trà was recalled to Hanoi for a series of meetings to hammer out a plan for an enormous offensive against Saigon.


title: Viet Cong

text: In response to the anti-war movement, the U.S. Congress passed the Case–Church Amendment to prohibit further U.S. military intervention in Vietnam in June 1973 and reduced aid to South Vietnam in August 1974. With U.S. bombing ended, communist logistical preparations could be accelerated. An oil pipeline was built from North Vietnam to Viet Cong headquarters in Lộc Ninh, about 75 miles northwest of Saigon. (COSVN was moved back to South Vietnam following the Easter Offensive.) The Ho Chi Minh Trail, beginning as a series of treacherous mountain tracks at the start of the war, was upgraded throughout the war, first into a road network driveable by trucks in the dry season, and finally, into paved, all-weather roads that could be used year-round, even during the monsoon. Between the beginning of 1974 and April 1975, with now-excellent roads and no fear of air interdiction, the communists delivered nearly 365,000 tons of war matériel to battlefields, 2.6 times the total for the previous 13 years.


title: Viet Cong

text: The success of the 1973–74 dry season offensive convinced Hanoi to accelerate its timetable. When there was no U.S. response to a successful communist attack on Phước Bình in January 1975, South Vietnamese morale collapsed. The next major battle, at Buôn Ma Thuột in March, was a communist walkover. After the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, the PRG moved into government offices there. At the victory parade, Tạng noticed that the units formerly dominated by southerners were missing, replaced by northerners years earlier. The bureaucracy of the Republic of Vietnam was uprooted and authority over the South was assigned to the PAVN. People considered tainted by association with the former South Vietnamese government were sent to re-education camps, despite the protests of the non-communist PRG members including Tạng. Without consulting the PRG, North Vietnamese leaders decided to rapidly dissolve the PRG at a party meeting in August 1975. North and South were merged as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in July 1976 and the PRG was dissolved. The Viet Cong was merged with the Vietnamese Fatherland Front on February 4, 1977.


title: Viet Cong

text: Activists opposing American involvement in Vietnam said that the Viet Cong was a nationalist insurgency indigenous to the South. They claimed that the Viet Cong was composed of several parties—the People's Revolutionary Party, the Democratic Party and the Radical Socialist Party—and that Viet Cong chairman Nguyễn Hữu Thọ was not a communist.


title: Viet Cong

text: Anti-communists countered that the Viet Cong was merely a front for Hanoi. They said some statements issued by communist leaders in the 1980s and 1990s suggested that southern communist forces were influenced by Hanoi. According to the memoirs of Trần Văn Trà, the Viet Cong's top commander and PRG defense minister, he followed orders issued by the "Military Commission of the Party Central Committee" in Hanoi, which in turn implemented resolutions of the Politburo. Trà himself was deputy chief of staff for the PAVN before being assigned to the South. The official Vietnamese history of the war states that "The Liberation Army of South Vietnam [Viet Cong] is a part of the People's Army of Vietnam".


title: Tove Lo

text: Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson (born 29 October 1987), known professionally as Tove Lo (), is a Swedish singer and songwriter. She has been called "Sweden's darkest pop export" by "Rolling Stone." She is known for her raw, grunge-influenced take on pop music. Her honest, complex and autobiographical lyrical content has led to her being dubbed "the saddest girl in Sweden".


title: Tove Lo

text: Raised in the Djursholm district of Danderyd, Lo is an alumna of the music school Rytmus Musikergymnasiet. She formed the rock band Tremblebee in 2006. After it disbanded, Lo pursued a career in songwriting and earned a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music in 2011. Working with producers Alexander Kronlund, Max Martin, and Xenomania, she became a successful songwriter, while also recording and releasing her own compositions independently.


title: Tove Lo

text: In 2013, Lo was signed to Universal Music, Island and Polydor. The following year, Lo rose to prominence with her debut album, "Queen of the Clouds", which opened at number 14 on the U.S. "Billboard" 200 chart in October 2014. It spawned the sleeper hit single "Habits (Stay High)", which peaked at number three on the US "Billboard" Hot 100, as well as "Talking Body". Her second album, "Lady Wood", was released in October 2016 and debuted at number 11 on the "Billboard" 200. Its lead single, "Cool Girl", became an international hit. Her follow-up records, "Blue Lips" (2017) and "Sunshine Kitty" (2019), also performed well, the latter spawning the song "Glad He's Gone", which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video.


title: Tove Lo

text: In addition to her solo work, Lo has co-written songs for other artists, including: Lorde's "Homemade Dynamite" (2017) and Ellie Goulding's "Love Me like You Do" (2015), a song that garnered her Grammy Award and Golden Globe nominations. She has collaborated with many artists, including Duran Duran, Charli XCX, Alesso, Flume, SG Lewis, Channel Tres, Nick Jonas, Seven Lions, Broods, Urban Cone, Ava Max, Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue and Coldplay.


title: Tove Lo

text: Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson was born on 29 October 1987 in Helsingborg, Scania County, Sweden. She has one older brother and is the daughter of iZettle co-founder Magnus Nilsson and psychologist Gunilla Nilsson Edholm. Her lifelong nickname and adopted stage name, Tove Lo, was given to her at age three by her godmother because of her love for lynxes (singular: "lo" in Swedish). She explained; "There was this lynx at a zoo that was called Tove, and that I totally fell in love with. It was my dear godmother who decided to call me Tove Lo, after that lynx. It stuck." Lo moved to the affluent Djursholm district of Danderyd Municipality, just north of Stockholm when she was six years old. She describes her childhood as being "very protected" and her family as "pretty posh". The singer excelled in social sciences at school and grew fond of literature, writing poetry and short stories. In an interview with the BBC, she explained, "Growing up so safe, I think I was looking for something else." During her teens she suffered from bulimia, to which her mother sought to help her through a therapist. After her first serious relationship breakup she cut herself several times due to the embarrassment.


title: Tove Lo

text: Nilsson developed a love for music and formed a girl band with her friends. She wrote her first song with them at age 10 or 11. By age 15, Lo had written "all these lyrics that nobody ever saw" and had performed twice on stage, before enrolling at Rytmus Musikergymnasiet, a Stockholm music school. During her time at Rytmus, she developed a friendship with Caroline Hjelt, who would later form the Swedish duo Icona Pop. After two years, she graduated from the school and felt assured that her career would be in music despite her parents preferring she do something else.


title: Tove Lo

text: In 2006, Lo began writing songs with Christian Bjerring, a guitarist from Rytmus. The pair then formed a math rock band, Tremblebee, with three other male students from the school. They played together for "three years in bars across Sweden, independently releasing some of their songs, before breaking up in 2009. During her time with the band, Lo developed a passion for performing on stage, and was introduced to Swedish production duo The Struts.


title: Tove Lo

text: After Tremblebee broke up, Lo's musical focus turned toward pop. She decided to work on her own tracks, spending six months in her shed studio producing a demo, while doing session singing to support herself. She learned to play the drums and became knowledgeable about music programming and record production. Lo later lived with the duo Icona Pop, in a suburb near Stockholm.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo met an A&R man at a party in Stockholm celebrating Icona Pop's first record deal and handed him her demo. They met again by chance in a bar in London. He liked her demo and subsequently introduced her to a songwriting group which included The Struts and Hjelt. In 2011, Lo decided to pursue a career in songwriting and earned a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music. This new career path led her to travel to Los Angeles, and work with Swedish producer Max Martin. In 2012, she collaborated with British production team Xenomania and Swedish producer Alexander Kronlund, co-writing Girls Aloud's "Something New", Icona Pop's "We Got the World" and tracks for the duo's self-titled debut album.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo then decided to manage an "indie career on the side", recording her more personal compositions and releasing them independently. She released her first single, "Love Ballad", in October 2012, and her second single, "Habits", in March 2013. The latter gained her a substantial online following. Throughout 2013, Max Martin and his fellow Swedish producer Shellback mentored Lo. She was featured on Swedish disc jockey Lucas Nord's single, "Run on Love", released in June 2013 for his album "Islands". She also collaborated on the single "Strangers" by Seven Lions and Myon & Shane 54 for (2013), and Seven Lions' extended play (EP), "Worlds Apart" (2014). She also co-wrote Victoria Justice's "Gold", and tracks for Icona Pop's "This Is... Icona Pop".


title: Tove Lo

text: Thanks to the strength of her online following, and the popularity of "Habits", Universal Music offered Lo a recording deal, releasing her first single, "Out of Mind" in October 2013. She would eventually be signed to Island and Polydor Records. Lo then shifted her focus to an international singing career, earning critical acclaim for her first live shows in London and during South by Southwest in the United States. Lo's debut EP, "Truth Serum", was released on 3 March 2014. It became her first charting release in Sweden where it peaked at number 13. The EP was also a critical success, and led to several news media sources referring to Lo as "a pop star in waiting". It spawned three singles; "Out of Mind", the lead single, appeared only on the Finnish Airplay Chart, peaking at number 39. The next singles were "Habits (Stay High)" and its remixed version by production duo Hippie Sabotage, re-titled as "Stay High". It marked Lo's international breakthrough into mainstream success, peaking at number 13 in Sweden and number six in the United Kingdom. The singer was later named VH1's You Oughta Know and iHeart Radio's On the Verge artist. She made her live television debut performing "Habits (Stay High)" on the "Late Night with Seth Meyers" in June 2014.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo's debut album, "Queen of the Clouds", was released on 24 September 2014 to generally positive reviews. It debuted at number 14 on the US "Billboard" 200, selling 19,000 copies in its first week, and received a Platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2016. The album peaked at number 17 in the United Kingdom and number six in Sweden, where the Swedish Recording Industry Association (GLF) certified it platinum for sales of 40,000 units. Serving as the album's lead single, a United States release of "Habits (Stay High)" became a sleeper hit. It was Lo's commercial breakthrough there, peaking at number three on the US "Billboard" Hot 100. The album's second single "Talking Body" peaked at number 12 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100, number 16 in Sweden, and number 17 in the United Kingdom. Her next singles were "Timebomb" and "Moments".


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo was also featured on Swedish DJ Alesso's single "Heroes (We Could Be)" from his debut album, "Forever". It was a commercial success, peaking at number five in Sweden, number six in the United Kingdom and number thirty-one on the US "Billboard" Hot 100. Lo served as the opening act for the third leg of American singer Katy Perry's Prismatic World Tour in November 2014. She wrote, produced and recorded the song "Scream My Name" for released that month. In late 2014, the singer was signed to Max Martin's songwriting collective Wolf Cousins. The 2014 album releases of Cher Lloyd's "Sorry I'm Late", Lea Michele's "Louder", and Zara Larsson's "1" featured tracks co-written by Lo. She also co-wrote "What Are You Waiting For?" by The Saturdays. In December 2014, Lo announced she was taking time off to undergo surgery on her vocal cords which had developed cysts. The surgery took place successfully on 3 January 2015.


title: Tove Lo

text: At the 2015 Grammis, Lo won in the categories for Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for "Habits (Stay High)". She co-wrote the 2015 singles "Love Me like You Do" by Ellie Goulding and "Sparks" by Hilary Duff. She went on to write two other tracks on Duff's fifth album "Breathe In. Breathe Out.", "Stay In Love" and "One in A Million". "Love Me Like You Do" topped the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number three on the "Billboard" Hot 100. It also earned Lo nominations for the Golden Globes, Grammys and Critics' Choice Awards. The Swedish group Urban Cone's single "Come Back to Me"—from their album "Polaroid Memories"—released in March 2015 featured Lo. She also co-wrote and was featured on "Rumors", on Adam Lambert's third studio album "The Original High". On 24 September 2015, a repackaged version of "Queen of the Clouds" was released as the "Blueprint Edition". It featured all the tracks from the original release, as well as "Heroes (We Could Be)" and tracks from "Truth Serum". Four days later, she started her first headlining concert tour, the Queen of the Clouds Tour, featuring fellow Swedish singer Erik Hassle as the opening act. Also that year, she won STIM's Platinum Guitar prize, which is awarded to accomplished Swedish songwriters. Lo was featured on Coldplay's single "Fun", from their seventh album "A Head Full of Dreams" released in December 2015.


title: Tove Lo

text: On 19 February 2016, Lo released "Scars", the lead single of the soundtrack to the film "". The next month, she was featured on the remix version of the single "Desire" by English band Years & Years, which charted in Belgium and Sweden. In the same month, she appeared as a featured artist on Nick Jonas's "Close", the lead single from his third studio album "Last Year Was Complicated". The track peaked at number 14 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 and received a Platinum certification by the RIAA. It also reached the top 20 in Canada and New Zealand.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo was also featured on Australian musician Flume's single "Say It", released on 20 April 2016. The track was successful in Oceania, entering the top five in Australia and New Zealand. The artist co-wrote Ellie Goulding's "Still Falling For You", the lead single from the to the film "Bridget Jones's Baby" (2016).


title: Tove Lo

text: On 28 October 2016, the singer released her second studio album, "Lady Wood". It topped the album chart in Sweden and peaked at number 11 on the US "Billboard" 200. Its lead single, "Cool Girl", entered the top 30 in Australia and was certified Platinum. In New Zealand and Sweden it also made the top 30 where it was certified Gold. Five days before to the album's release, Lo announced a European and North American solo tour, the Lady Wood Tour. It would take the singer to twenty-one cities across two continents, beginning on 6 January 2017. To promote the record, she released two short films directed by Tim Erem featuring tracks from the album. The first, "Fairy Dust", was uploaded to YouTube on 31 October 2016 but was removed for a few hours because of the site's policies on sexual content. The singer addressed the situation via Twitter, stating that she was not even naked on the clip. The next clip, "Fire Fade", was released on 25 August 2017. In late 2016, Lo was an opening act for Maroon 5's The Maroon V Tour across the United States and promoted her album "Lady Wood".


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo co-wrote and performed the song "Lies in the Dark", from the to the film "Fifty Shades Darker", released on 10 February 2017. Six days later, it was announced that she would be opening for Coldplay on their A Head Full of Dreams Tour across Europe, the United States, and Canada from June to October 2017 . Lo co-wrote "Homemade Dynamite", from New Zealand artist Lorde's second studio album, "Melodrama". It was released on 16 September 2017 as the record's third single. On 17 November 2017, Lo released her third studio album, "Blue Lips", which she referred to as the sequel to "Lady Wood". Compared to Lo's earlier releases, the record was less successful, peaking at number 138 on the US "Billboard" 200 and at number 15 in Sweden. The first single, "Disco Tits", was released in September 2017. She was later featured on "Out of My Head", the lead single from English singer Charli XCX's fourth mixtape "Pop 2", released in December of that year.


title: Tove Lo

text: On 7 June 2018, Lo released a remix of "Bitches" featuring XCX, Alma, Icona Pop and Elliphant as the second single from "Blue Lips".


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo was featured on the track Get Up And Fight, by Muse on the Simulation Theory album, which was on November 9th 2018.


title: Tove Lo

text: On 31 May 2019, Lo announced through a press release that her fourth studio album would be titled "Sunshine Kitty". The record's lead single, "Glad He's Gone", was released that same day alongside its lyric video. On 1 August, Lo announced that the album would be released on 20 September 2019. The second single, "Bad as the Boys" featuring Finnish musician Alma, was released the following day. Lo released the third single on 28 August 2019, "Jacques", a collaboration between her and British DJ Jax Jones. She then released "Really Don't Like U", featuring Australian musician and songwriter Kylie Minogue, on 6 September 2019. Five days earlier, Lo appeared in Alma's song "Worst Behaviour".


title: Tove Lo

text: On 15 January 2020, she released the single "Bikini Porn", which included the song "Passion And Pain Taste The Same When I'm Weak". In March 2020, Lo released an English cover of Veronica Maggio's song "Jag kommer" in partnership with Spotify for their "It's Hits" playlist. The song reached the top 40 in Sweden, Norway, and New Zealand. In May 2020 she released the "Paw Prints Edition" of "Sunshine Kitty", a reissued version featuring 8 new songs including "Bikini Porn", her cover of "Jag kommer", and new single "sadder badder cooler". In July 2020 she released a contest where six fans could join her on her "" island for a special DJ set by creating an outfit for their villager, with the best getting invited to the performance. On 5 February 2021, Martin Garrix released the track "Pressure", which features Lo.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo made her feature film acting debut in the 2021 Swedish-language film adaptation of Vilhelm Moberg's "The Emigrants".


title: Tove Lo

text: On 11 February 2022, Lo released the single "How Long" in promotion of the soundtrack to the second season of American teen drama "Euphoria". On 3 May 2022 she released the single "No One Dies From Love" through her own label Pretty Swede Records, marking her debut as an independent artist after being signed to Island Records since 2014. On 21 June 2022 she announced that her fifth studio album "Dirt Femme" would be released on 14 October 2022. The album contains both "How Long" and "No One Dies from Love" as well as the single "True Romance". The track "Cute & Cruel" features the Swedish band First Aid Kit. Another single from this album, "2 Die 4", was released on 29 July 2022, which samples the melody of the 1969 hit "Popcorn".


title: Tove Lo

text: On 5 August 2022, Pussy Riot released their debut mixtape "Matriarchy Now", executively produced by Lo.


title: Tove Lo

text: Music critics have described Lo's music as synth-pop, electropop, dance-pop and indie pop, comparing her musical style to that of singers Kesha, Lorde, Robyn, and Katy Perry. Sasha Frere-Jones of "The New Yorker" describes Lo's sound as "of the moment: simple, spare, electronic, and unfussy". Her musical style is often described as dark, idiosyncratic and raw. "Rolling Stone" deemed her "Sweden's darkest pop export". Lo has a soprano vocal range. Peter Robinson writes, "As a vocalist she hints at euphoria and melancholy in equal measure". She has stated that her vocals are predominantly recorded from the first three takes of their demos to best convey her emotions. Her music uses a dynamic mix of prominent drum instrumentation, quiet verses and thunderous choruses indebted to the template of grunge music.


title: Tove Lo

text: Described as "the world's most brutally honest pop star" by Alex Panisch of "Out", Lo uses songwriting as a means of therapy for subjects she avoids speaking about. Her lyrics are primarily autobiographical, and are based mostly on mistakes, love, sex and failed relationships being characteristically direct, candid and complex. According to Tim Jonze of "The Guardian", the singer tends to home in on "the more deranged side of love". Dubbed "the saddest girl in Sweden", Lo admits that her lyrics are predominantly sad because she is "useless" at writing tracks with a happier tone. Her lyrics have been noted to make subjects that are generally relegated to the genres of punk and hip hop more accessible in a pop framework.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo's debut EP, "Truth Serum", documents one of her failed relationships in the order it took place. "Queen of the Clouds", her debut studio album, is a concept album that describes the stages of her relationships in three sections: "The Sex", "The Love" and "The Pain". Jason Lipshutz of "Billboard" described the album as "blisteringly honest" and "unapologetically uncensored". Her second studio album, "Lady Wood", talks about "different kinds of rushes in life" and is divided into two chapters, "Fairy Dust" and "Fire Fade". The singer's third studio record, "Blue Lips", is a sequel to "Lady Wood" and is split into two chapters: "Light Beams" and "Pitch Black". Lo's lyrics often contain profanity and drug metaphors. Discussing the process of writing for other artists, the singer told "Paste" that she avoids drawing from her own experiences so that the songs do not become personal. She also said: "My main goal is to say something how they would say it, even if I might say it in a different way that makes more sense to me". In an interview with "Coup De Main", Lo explained the songwriting process for her own songs:


title: Tove Lo

text: Sometimes it starts with a random lyric idea that sets the tone for the whole song. Chords and sounds build from the lyric and rhythm, kind of. Sometimes it's a track I fall in love with... but writing my own songs, I rarely write on tracks. Then it's pretty much always 'the story' first. Then I add some chords and melody on my piano, or do a minimal production to get the sound right.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo grew up idolising Courtney Love and was inspired by grunge culture and the polarising lyrics of her music and her band, Hole. She also became fascinated with Love's romantic relationship with Kurt Cobain, as well as the rawness and honesty of his music with his band Nirvana. While in high school, Lo developed a passion for pop music and songwriting, influenced mainly by the output of Swedish singers Robyn and Lykke Li. She says the simplicity and quirky lyrics of French singer Charlotte Gainsbourg's album "IRM" (2009) is the main inspiration behind her career in music and said that it "opened a new world" for her sonically. She models her singing on the vocal stylings of Amy Winehouse, Jeff Buckley, and Mikky Ekko. Other artists she has cited as musical influences include Madonna, The Weeknd, and Silverchair.


title: Tove Lo

text: An interview and profile of Tove Lo in "W" magazine in October 2016 referred to her as "openly bisexual", citing that as one of several identifiers "she once took for granted but are now very much part of her public persona." In an interview with "Attitude" in January 2017, Lo referred to her own bisexuality: "Being open and owning my sexuality in both ways—with both men and women—I think that's just never been a big deal", adding that she was very lucky growing up in a liberal country. In March the same year, she gave an interview with "Out" magazine, stating she had never been in a relationship with a woman.


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo says she created a media image for herself that is synonymous with her true identity. She has a prominent tattoo along her left upper arm of a girl harnessed to the back of a bumblebee. It is from the cover of Jack Off Jill's album "Clear Hearts Grey Flowers"; the album cover was designed by Mark Ryden. Frequently barefoot during her live performances, Lo's look is often compared to that of her style icon Janis Joplin. Her other style influences include hippie fashion, and the fashion of older rock singers, the people of Stockholm and Edie Sedgwick. According to "Elle" writer Rebecca Moss, Lo is "a true '90s child unwilling to part with her early iconography". Lindsey Rhoades of "The Village Voice" writes, "Tove Lo rocks a specific brand that veers slightly from most other women in pop—she paints herself as the hard-drinking, hard-drugging, DTF party girl, admitting the somewhat destructive nature of these preoccupations but celebrating them all the same." In 2014, Lo's first clothing line, which she also modelled, is based on the lyrics of her EP, "Truth Serum".


title: Tove Lo

text: Lo has voiced her frustration over censorship in the United States, including her lyrics, although she understands it is the only way to get her songs played on the radio. The artist has also commented that, "... in Sweden, we don't really censor that way. You hear every swear word, in Swedish and English, on the radio, and kids will be singing along." The singer has often said in interviews that she is unapologetically proud of her body, occasionally engaging in exhibitionism at her shows. "I started just by showing a little bit of boob or just being sassy, and everyone got so excited and then one night I just did it", she told MTV News at Bonnaroo. Lo is often asked about being a negative role model for women, given the many sexual and drug references in her lyrics. The artist has commented she finds it normal to talk about sex since she grew up in a country where that is considered "normal and not shameful", and many of her fans like the way she expresses herself. Lo also believes she receives these kinds of comments due to gender double standards, adding that: "I felt like I was getting asked all these questions because I'm a girl. ... It would be insulting to ask a guy that. Which it is to a girl as well."


title: Tove Lo

text: On 26 July 2020, Lo announced on her Instagram story that she had married her boyfriend, Charlie Twaddle.


title: Tove Lo

text: After her commercial breakthrough, Lo has received many award nominations. She has earned four Grammis awards in her native Sweden, including Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for "Habits (Stay High)". Lo has also won four Scandipop Awards, which recognize the best music by artists from Nordic countries. As a songwriter of "Love Me like You Do" by Ellie Goulding, Lo received nominations for the Golden Globes, Grammys and Critics' Choice Awards. The singer has also been nominated for the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Swedish Act from 2014 to 2017.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo Vítor Borba Ferreira (born 19 April 1972), known simply as Rivaldo (), is a Brazilian former footballer who played mainly as an attacking midfielder but also as a second striker, and on occasion deployed as a wide midfielder or as a winger. Rivaldo is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and among the most skillful and creative players of his generation. He was renowned for his bending free kicks, bicycle kicks, feints, powerful ball striking from distance, and ability to both score and create goals. In 1999, he won the Ballon d'Or and was named FIFA World Player of the Year. In 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo started his career in 1991 with Brazilian club Santa Cruz, going on to have spells at Mogi Mirim, a loan spell at Corinthians, and Palmeiras. In 1996, he moved to Europe with Spanish side Deportivo de La Coruña, where his performances in his only season there led him to sign for Barcelona in 1997. At Barcelona, he formed a successful partnership with Dutch international Patrick Kluivert, and won consecutive La Liga titles in 1998 and 1999, as well as the 1998 Copa del Rey. Rivaldo notably scored a hattrick against Valencia in June 2001 which qualified Barcelona for the 2001-02 UEFA Champions League; the last goal was a last minute 20-yard bicycle kick winner and the hattrick itself is often ranked as the greatest ever. During his five-year tenure there, he scored 130 goals, ranking him among Barcelona's highest goalscorers of all time.


title: Rivaldo

text: In 2002, Rivaldo signed for Italian club A.C. Milan, winning the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League in his only season there, however his performances were underwhelming and he cancelled his contract with Milan in late 2004. He went on to play for Cruzeiro, Olympiacos, AEK Athens, Bunyodkor, a loan spell at São Paulo, Kabuscorp and São Caetano. In March 2014, Rivaldo announced his retirement from professional football, however since June 2015 he made appearances for Mogi Mirim, before retiring once again in August 2015.


title: Rivaldo

text: From 1993 to 2003, Rivaldo played 74 matches and scored 35 goals for Brazil and is the seventh highest goalscorer for the country. He helped Brazil reach the final of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and won the 1999 Copa América where he was named player of the tournament. Rivaldo starred in an attacking trio with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho in the 2002 FIFA World Cup winning team. Scoring in five of Brazil's seven games at the tournament, Rivaldo was named in the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team in 2002 having also previously been selected in 1998. He is an inductee to the Brazilian Football Museum Hall of Fame.


title: Rivaldo

text: Born in Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil, Rivaldo had a poor upbringing in the "favelas" of the city. His physical appearance still marks the poverty he experienced in his childhood: malnourishment-caused bowleggedness and the loss of several teeth. Predominantly left footed, Rivaldo began his professional career at the age of 16, when he signed with Paulistano Futebol Clube in 1989, despite the Paulistano coaches believing him too physically weak to succeed. Rivaldo's father Romildo was killed in a road accident in 1989, but Rivaldo signed his first professional contract later that year.


title: Rivaldo

text: He went on to play for Santa Cruz in 1991. In 1992, he moved south to the state of São Paulo where he played for Mogi Mirim in the second tier of Brazilian football. In 1993, he moved to the state capital to play for Corinthians in the first division, on loan.


title: Rivaldo

text: In the next year, he switched local allegiances and moved to Palmeiras, helping the club successfully defend its league championship in 1994 and winning Campeonato Paulista in 1996. In both 1993 and 1994, he was honoured by the authoritative publication "Placar Magazine" with the Bola de Ouro for the best player in his position.


title: Rivaldo

text: Before the 1996 Olympics, Parma announced that they had signed Rivaldo and his teammate Amaral from Palmeiras. After the Olympics, there was a dispute, and rather than Italy, Rivaldo moved to Spain as he joined Deportivo La Coruña in La Liga. He only stayed for one season, but nonetheless it proved to be a successful one for both him and the club. Rivaldo was the joint-fourth top goalscorer of the season, with 21 goals from 41 matches, as Deportivo finished third in the league.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo switched to FC Barcelona in 1997 in a transfer deal securing Deportivo a 4 billion pesetas (around $26 million) transfer fee, with Sir Bobby Robson convincing Barcelona to sign Rivaldo ahead of Steve McManaman by saying that Rivaldo would guarantee the team many goals.


title: Rivaldo

text: In his first season at Barcelona, Rivaldo was the second top goalscorer with 19 goals in 34 matches, as Barcelona won The Double of La Liga and Copa del Rey. In 1999, he won another La Liga title with Barcelona, and once again was the league's second highest scorer with 24 goals. In 1999, Rivaldo was named FIFA World Player of the Year and he also received the Ballon d'Or. After Barcelona's unsuccessful Champions League campaign, Rivaldo was linked with a move away from Camp Nou. Then Manchester United captain Roy Keane was reported stating Rivaldo was the player he most wanted United to sign.


title: Rivaldo

text: In his third season at Barcelona, Rivaldo fell out with manager Louis van Gaal, when he insisted playing as a playmaker rather than on the left wing. Even though he had a strained relationship with Van Gaal, Rivaldo went on to score 10 goals in the season's Champions League as the club reached the semi-finals. Van Gaal was fired in June 2000.


title: Rivaldo

text: In the following 2000–01 season, Rivaldo was once again the second highest goalscorer of the league, with 23 goals. In the last game of the season, against Valencia CF, Rivaldo scored a hat-trick to win the game 3–2. Frequently ranked the greatest hat-trick ever, his first goal was a trademark bending free kick that curled into the bottom right corner, the second saw him send the Valencia player the wrong way with a feint before a strike with little back-lift from 25 yards swerved into the bottom left corner of the net, and his match-winning third occurred after Rivaldo controlled the ball with the chest from the edge of the 18-yard box and executed an overhead bicycle kick in the 89th minute, which he regards as the best goal of his career. An ecstatic Rivaldo ripped off his jersey and started swinging it over his head during his goal celebrations, while Barcelona club president Joan Gaspart broke with convention in the stadium's VIP box by punching the air with both fists and yelling his delight next to the opposition delegation. The win pushed Barcelona ahead of Valencia to secure a place in the 2001–02 Champions League. After the game Rivaldo stated; "What happened tonight has been incredible. I dedicate the winning goal to all the players who have fought so hard all season and all the supporters who have suffered so much. I'm delighted to have made them happy with my goals." He scored a total of 36 goals that season. During his five-year tenure at Barcelona, Rivaldo scored 130 goals, ranking him among the club's highest goalscorers of all time.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo signed a three-year deal with the Italian Serie A club Milan in 2002. With Milan, he won the Coppa Italia and the Champions League in the 2002–03 season. In August 2003, he also won the UEFA Super Cup before cancelling his contract with Milan in November that year. After leaving Milan, he briefly returned to Brazil, playing for Cruzeiro in Belo Horizonte. He came close to signing for Bolton Wanderers in 2004, though Bolton eventually pulled out of the deal. Due to his poor performances throughout the season, he won the Bidone d'Oro Award in 2003, which is given to the worst Serie A player during a particular season.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo decided to return to Brazil in early 2004, by appointment of coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo who convinced him to play for the club, becoming Cruzeiro's major signing for the Copa Libertadores. However, his time with the team was very short, only eleven games and two goals. As reported by CNN, Rivaldo left the club after just two months due to the firing of Luxemburgo, Rivaldo's mentor earlier in his career. Rivaldo stated, "When he left, I preferred to leave as well. It was my decision because I consider Luxemburgo to be a special person."


title: Rivaldo

text: On 22 July 2004, Rivaldo joined Olympiacos of Superleague Greece. During the 2004–05 season he scored some stand out goals, one of them coming in his first derby against Panathinaikos that arguably turned out to be his most famous in an Olympiacos shirt: a bending free kick to send Olympiacos to victory over their eternal rivals. Another notable goal by Rivaldo came the following week in Olympiacos's matchday 6 UEFA Champions League group game in England against eventual champions Liverpool F.C. where he scored a deft free-kick in front of the Kop and put the Greek giants ahead. However Olympiacos were eliminated after Liverpool talisman Steven Gerrard scored with a 25-yard half volley 3 minutes from full-time. In the last game of Rivaldo's first season at Olympiacos, the club needed a victory in order to win the Alpha Ethniki championship, with Panathinaikos just one point behind. Olympiacos went on to beat Iraklis 0–1 in an away match in Thessaloniki, thanks to Rivaldo's goal, and secured the championship.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo renewed his contract with Olympiacos for a third year, despite now being 34 years old. In July 2006, Rivaldo announced that the 2006–07 season with Olympiacos would be his last in Europe, before returning to Brazil. However, he quickly changed his decision and decided to stay for another year. The 2006–2007 season saw him score 17 goals in 27 Superleague matches. Rivaldo scored 43 goals in 81 games for Olympiacos.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo was released by Olympiacos after a dispute with the chairman of the club, Sokratis Kokkalis, who decided that he was too old to continue with the club. Later that summer, he signed for Super League club AEK Athens on 29 May 2007. His first Super League goal with the Athens' club came through a penalty in their 3–0 win against Panionios. Rivaldo had another great season and the team. After the winning match against Olympiacos with 4–0, Rivaldo showed his four fingers to the camera.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo had stated his intention to leave Greece if the ruling went in favour of Olympiakos and AEK Athens were not declared champions. He stated: "A team that was not good enough to win the title on the pitch does not deserve the trophy."


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo announced on 25 August 2008 to a Greek Sport Radio Station that he agreed to continue his career at Bunyodkor in Uzbekistan, effective immediately, after what he described as an "extremely tempting contract offer".


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo signed a two-year contract worth €10.2 million and later signed an extension to extend the contract to 2011. On his debut for Bunyodkor, Rivaldo scored both goals in a 2–0 win. In 2009, Rivaldo became the first player in the world to score one, then two, then three, then four goals in four consecutive matches. He scored one goal in the first match and two goals in the second match against Navbahor. In the third match on 25 June 2009, Rivaldo scored a hat trick in a 4–0 win against Metallurg. In the fourth match Bunyodkor beat Sogdiana Jizzakh 5–0 and Rivaldo scored four in 17 minutes. After the end of the 2009 season, Rivaldo won UFF Topscorer award, having scored 20 league goals, and was runner up for UFF Player of the Year award. He scored 33 goals for the club in total. Rivaldo announced on 11 August 2010 on Twitter that he had cancelled his contract with Bunyodkor.


title: Rivaldo

text: On 18 November 2010, he announced he would be returning to Mogi Mirim, the club that he had started his career in the early 1990s, through his Social Networking site, saying: "After sorting out a lot of things outside of the country, I have decided to play the Paulista 2011 for Mogi Mirim, of whom I am President." However, he joined São Paulo in January 2011.


title: Rivaldo

text: On 23 January 2011, Rivaldo joined São Paulo. He scored on his debut for them in the First Division against Linense with a wonderful goal. The ball was sent over from the left hand side of the pitch, before Rivaldo controlled the ball and took it over a defender using his left knee, and finished at the near post. He spent most part of March 2011 tending injury, but came back for following fixtures such as a 1–1 draw with Palmeiras and a 2–1 win over Corinthians.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo stated on his Twitter account that he would leave São Paulo by the end of the season: "I just want to inform everybody that on Saturday, it's going to be my last training session at São Paulo. I've been told by the club's official that this is going to be my last season here." He added: "I'm not saying goodbye to football yet. I still have a lot to accomplish. I just wish I could hang up my boots at the end of 2012."


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo joined Angolan club Kabuscorp in January 2012. On 18 March, Rivaldo scored a hat-trick against Recreativo Caala. Rivaldo left Kabuscorp in November 2012 after the expiration of his contract.


title: Rivaldo

text: In January 2013, Rivaldo joined São Caetano, signing a deal that ran to December. He scored his first goal for his new club in his debut against Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, 9 February. During the following match against Clube Atlético Bragantino Rivaldo once again scored, although his team lost with 2–1. In November 2013, he left the club due to knee problems.


title: Rivaldo

text: In December 2013, Rivaldo joined Mogi Mirim, signing a deal that ran until 2015. His son Rivaldinho played for the club. Rivaldo had only made one league appearance for the club when he retired in July 2015.


title: Rivaldo

text: In March 2014, the Brazilian icon officially retired from football after a career which spanned more than 20 years, and he decided to remain as the president of Mogi Mirim to help run the club and to look after his son, Rivaldinho. In a released statement, Rivaldo commented: "My history as a player has come to the end. With tears in my eyes today I would like to thank God, my family and all the support, the affection that I received during those 24 years as a player." However, he returned to the team in June 2015. On 14 July 2015, Rivaldo and Rivaldinho scored goals in the same match for the first time as Mogi Mirim beat Macaé 3–1.


title: Rivaldo

text: On 18 January 2019, SCC Mohammédia announced Rivaldo as their new technical director and coach for the following season. The player denied that a deal was made, as he signed a pre-contract in which the club must achieve promotion from National (third tier in the Moroccan league).


title: Rivaldo

text: In 1993, he debuted for the Brazil national football team, scoring the only goal in a friendly match against Mexico. He was selected to represent Brazil at the 1996 Summer Olympics. The Brazilian team won the bronze medal, but Rivaldo was not selected for the third place playoff.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo returned to the Brazilian national team for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, where he scored three goals en route to the final, including two in the 3–2 quarter-final win against Denmark. Brazil were defeated 3–0 by hosts France in final, failing to defend their 1994 title. Rivaldo had not been a part of the victorious Brazilian team at the 1997 Copa América tournament, but was part of the successful defence of that title at the 1999 Copa América. Rivaldo finished the tournament as the top scorer, with five goals; one being an equaliser from a free-kick in a 2–1 win over Argentina in the quarter-finals, and two in the 3–0 victory over Uruguay in the final. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo had been the centre of criticism when Brazil did not win tournaments, ever since the 1996 Olympics. In the 1–0 win against Colombia in November 2000, Rivaldo was booed so heavily that he threatened to retire from playing for his country.


title: Rivaldo

text: The zenith and nadir of Rivaldo's national team career came at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, hosted in South Korea and Japan, where he was able to erase the disappointment of the previous World Cup Final defeat, helping Brazil win their fifth World Cup. Featuring in an attacking trio with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, dubbed "the three R's", Rivaldo scored in the first five games while Ronaldo scored in four matches. Despite a successful tournament, Rivaldo was involved in a controversial incident against Turkey. Near the end of the match, with the ball out of play, Turkish defender Hakan Ünsal kicked a ball towards Rivaldo, who was waiting at the corner flag. The ball struck his thigh, but Rivaldo fell to the ground clutching his face. The referee sent the Turkish player off with a second yellow card. After a video review, Rivaldo was fined 11,670 Swiss francs by FIFA.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo's goal against Belgium in the second round prompted Belgian coach Robert Waseige to name him as the deciding factor. Ronaldinho assisted Rivaldo to score the equaliser against England in the quarter-finals before Ronaldinho scored the winning goal in a 2–1 victory. Brazil met Germany in the final, and went on to win the tournament with a 2–0 victory, courtesy of two goals by Ronaldo with Rivaldo involved in both goals. The first came after Rivaldo's shot was saved by German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn with Ronaldo scoring the rebound, and the second saw Rivaldo fool the German defence with a dummy as the ball ran on to Ronaldo who finished. Rivaldo was named by Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari as the best player of the tournament. Rivaldo along with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho were named in the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team.


title: Rivaldo

text: Rivaldo's last cap was on 19 November 2003 in Curitiba in a 3–3 draw with Uruguay. He played 79 minutes before being substituted for Luís Fabiano. He had scored his last goal just three days earlier from the penalty spot in a 1–1 draw with Peru. In his time with the national side, Rivaldo won 74 caps, and scored 35 goals.


title: Rivaldo

text: Regarded as one of the best players of his generation and also one of the greatest players of all time, Rivaldo was a elegant, skillful, and creative player, known for his dribbling ability, use of feints, tricks, flair, balance, first touch, and close ball control. Despite his height, he was also extremely agile. A dead-ball specialist, Rivaldo was renowned for his bending free kicks and penalty taking, as well as his ability to score from distance with powerful strikes. Left footed and possessing excellent technique, he was also known for his ball striking from volleys, and for having a penchant for scoring from bicycle kicks.


title: Rivaldo

text: Although he was not a true striker, Rivaldo was a prolific goalscorer, capable of playing in several creative and offensive positions: during the prime of his career, a period where he won the Ballon d'Or and was named FIFA World Player of the Year, he was often deployed in a playmaking attacking midfield role as a classic number 10, due to his vision and passing ability, which made him an excellent assist provider. He could also function as a second striker, or as a left winger, a position which he often occupied earlier in his career, due to his acceleration and crossing ability. Although predominantly left footed, he was capable of playing on either wing.


title: Rivaldo

text: In 2002, John Carlin of "The Guardian" noted that Rivaldo "combines to dazzling effect the two essential qualities of the ideal footballer: artistry and efficiency." His colleague, Rob Smyth, echoed his views in 2008, commenting: "if you could marry British will with continental skill, you would have the perfect footballer. Such a mixed recipe was thrillingly in evidence in Diego Maradona. Since then, however, perhaps only Rivaldo has fused the two qualities," noting that like the Argentinian, the Brazilian had "bronca" (the word used repeatedly in Maradona's autobiography to refer to "anger, fury, hatred, resentment, bitter discontent). Former Dutch international Ruud Gullit believed that Rivaldo's ability and qualities were often overlooked, as "he played in the same era as Brazilian counterparts Ronaldo and Ronaldinho."


title: Hank Aaron

text: Henry Louis Aaron (February 5, 1934 – January 22, 2021), nicknamed "Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. One of the greatest baseball players in history, he spent 21 seasons with the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves in the National League (NL) and two seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers in the American League (AL). At the time of his retirement, Aaron held most of the game's key career power-hitting records. He broke the long-standing MLB record for home runs held by Babe Ruth and remained the career leader for 33 years. He hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 through 1973 and is one of only two players to hit 30 or more home runs in a season at least fifteen times.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron holds the MLB records for the most career runs batted in (RBIs) (2,297), extra base hits (1,477), and total bases (6,856). The total base record is remarkable in context: at the time of his retirement, he had travelled over 12 miles farther on the base paths than any other player in MLB history. Aaron is also third all-time for career hits (3,771) and fifth in runs scored (2,174). He is one of only four players to have at least 17 seasons with 150 or more hits. Aaron's ability as a hitter can be illustrated by his still having over 3,000 hits even without counting any of his home runs.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron was born and raised in and around Mobile, Alabama. Aaron had seven siblings, including Tommie Aaron, who played major-league baseball with him. He appeared briefly in the Negro American League and in minor league baseball before starting his major league career. By his final MLB season, Aaron was the last former Negro league baseball player on a major league roster. During his time in Major League Baseball, and especially during his run for the home run record, Aaron and his family endured extensive racist threats. His experiences fueled his activism during the civil rights movement.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron played the vast majority of his MLB games in right field, though he appeared at several other infield and outfield positions. In his last two seasons, he was primarily a designated hitter. He was an NL All-Star for 20 seasons and an AL All-Star for one season, and he holds the record for the most All-Star selections (25), while sharing the record for most All-Star Games played (24) with Willie Mays and Stan Musial. He was a three-time Gold Glove winner, and in 1957, he won the NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award when the Milwaukee Braves won the World Series.


title: Hank Aaron

text: After his retirement, Aaron held front office roles with the Atlanta Braves, including the senior vice president. In 1988, Aaron was inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1999, "The Sporting News" ranked Aaron fifth on its list of the "100 Greatest Baseball Players". In 1982, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. That same year, MLB introduced the Hank Aaron Award to recognize the top offensive players in each league. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002. He was named a 2010 Georgia Trustee by the Georgia Historical Society in recognition of accomplishments that reflect the ideals of Georgia's founders. Aaron resided near Atlanta until his death.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron was born in Mobile, Alabama, to Herbert Aaron Sr. and Estella (Pritchett) Aaron. He had seven siblings. Tommie Aaron, one of his brothers, also went on to play Major League Baseball. By the time Aaron retired, he and his brother held the record for most career home runs by a pair of siblings (768). They were also the first siblings to appear in a League Championship Series as teammates.


title: Hank Aaron

text: While he was born in a section of Mobile referred to as "Down the Bay", he spent most of his youth in Toulminville. Aaron grew up in a poor family. His family could not afford baseball equipment, so he practiced by hitting bottle caps with sticks. He would create his own bats and balls out of materials he found on the streets. His boyhood idol was baseball star Jackie Robinson. Aaron attended Central High School as a freshman and a sophomore. Like most high schools, they did not have organized baseball, so he played outfield and third base for the Mobile Black Bears, a semipro team. Aaron was a member of the Boy Scouts of America.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Although he batted cross-handed (as a right-handed hitter, with his left hand above his right), Aaron established himself as a power hitter. As a result, in 1949, at the age of 15, Aaron had his first tryout with an MLB franchise, the Brooklyn Dodgers; however, he did not make the team. After this, Aaron returned to school to finish his secondary education, attending the Josephine Allen Institute, a private high school in Alabama. During his junior year, Aaron joined the Prichard Athletics, an independent Negro league team, followed by the Mobile Black Bears, another independent Negro league team. While on the Bears, Aaron earned $3 per game ($ today), which was a dollar more than he got while on the Athletics.


title: Hank Aaron

text: On November 20, 1951, baseball scout Ed Scott signed Aaron to a contract on behalf of the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro American League, where he played for three months.


title: Hank Aaron

text: He started play as a , shortstop, and earned $200 per month. As a result of his standout play with the Indianapolis Clowns, Aaron received two offers from MLB teams via telegram, one from the New York Giants and the other from the Boston Braves. Years later, Aaron remembered:


title: Hank Aaron

text: I had the Giants' contract in my hand. But the Braves offered fifty dollars a month more. That's the only thing that kept Willie Mays and me from being teammates – fifty dollars.


title: Hank Aaron

text: While with the Clowns he experienced racism. Of a time his team was in Washington, D.C. Aaron recalled


title: Hank Aaron

text: We had breakfast while we were waiting for the rain to stop, and I can still envision sitting with the Clowns in a restaurant behind Griffith Stadium and hearing them break all the plates in the kitchen after we finished eating. What a horrible sound. Even as a kid, the irony of it hit me: here we were in the capital in the land of freedom and equality, and they had to destroy the plates that had touched the forks that had been in the mouths of black men. If dogs had eaten off those plates, they'd have washed them.


title: Hank Aaron

text: The Howe Sports Bureau credits Aaron with a .366 batting average in 26 official Negro league games, with five home runs, 33 runs batted in (RBIs), 41 hits, and nine stolen bases.


title: Hank Aaron

text: The Braves purchased Aaron's contract from the Clowns for $10,000, which GM John Quinn thought was a steal, as he stated that he felt that Aaron was a $100,000 property. On June 12, 1952, Aaron signed with Braves' scout Dewey Griggs. During this time, he picked up the nickname "pork chops" because it "was the only thing I knew to order off the menu". A teammate later said, "the man ate pork chops three meals a day, two for breakfast".


title: Hank Aaron

text: The Braves assigned Aaron to the Eau Claire Bears, the Braves' Northern League Class-C farm team. The 1952 season proved to be very beneficial for Aaron. Playing in the infield, Aaron continued to develop as a ballplayer and made the Northern League's All-Star team. He broke his habit of hitting cross-handed and adopted the standard hitting technique. By the end of the season, he had performed so well that the league made him the unanimous choice for Rookie of the Year. Although he appeared in just 87 games, he scored 89 runs, had 116 hits, nine home runs, and 61 RBIs. In addition, Aaron hit for a .336 batting average. During his minor league experience, he was very homesick and faced constant racism, but his brother, Herbert Jr., told him not to give up the opportunity.


title: Hank Aaron

text: In 1953, the Braves promoted him to the Jacksonville Braves, their Class-A affiliate in the South Atlantic League. Helped by Aaron's performance, the Braves won the league championship that year. Aaron led the league in runs (115), hits (208), doubles (36), RBIs (125), total bases (338), and batting average (.362). He won the league's Most Valuable Player Award, and had such a dominant year that one sportswriter was prompted to say, "Henry Aaron led the league in everything except hotel accommodations." Aaron's time with the Braves did not come without problems. He was one of the first African Americans to play in the league. The 1950s were a period of racial segregation in parts of the United States, especially the southeastern portion of the country. When Aaron traveled around Jacksonville, Florida, and the surrounding areas, he was often separated from his team because of Jim Crow laws. In most circumstances, the team was responsible for arranging housing and meals for its players, but Aaron often had to make his own arrangements. The Braves' manager, Ben Geraghty, tried his best to help Aaron on and off the field. Former Braves minor league player and sportswriter Pat Jordan said, "Aaron gave [Geraghty] much of the credit for his own swift rise to stardom."


title: Hank Aaron

text: That same year, Aaron met his future wife, Barbara Lucas. The night they met, Lucas decided to attend the Braves' game. Aaron singled, doubled, and hit a home run in the game. On October 6, Aaron and Lucas married. In 1958, Aaron's wife noted that during the offseason he liked "to sit and watch those shooting westerns". He also enjoyed cooking and fishing.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron spent the winter of 1953 playing in Puerto Rico. Mickey Owen, the team's manager, helped Aaron with his batting stance. Until then, Aaron had hit most pitches to left field or center field, but after working with Owen, Aaron was able to hit the ball more effectively all over the field. During his stay in Puerto Rico, Owen also helped Aaron transition from second base to the outfield. Aaron had not played well at second base, but Owen noted that Aaron could catch fly balls and throw them well from the outfield to the infield.


title: Hank Aaron

text: The stint in Puerto Rico also allowed Aaron to avoid being drafted into military service. Though the Korean War was over, people were still being drafted. The Braves were able to speak to the draft board, making the case that Aaron could be the player to integrate the Southern Association the following season with the Atlanta Crackers. The board appears to have been convinced, as Aaron was not drafted.


title: Hank Aaron

text: In 1954, Aaron attended spring training with the major league club. Although he was on the roster of its farm club, Milwaukee manager Charley Grimm later stated, "From the start, he did so well I knew we were going to have to carry him." On March 13, 1954, Milwaukee Braves left fielder Bobby Thomson fractured his ankle while sliding into second base during a spring training game. The next day, Aaron made his first spring training start for the Braves major league team, playing in left field and hitting a home run. This led Hank Aaron to a major league contract, signed on the final day of spring training, and a Braves uniform with the number five. On April 13, Aaron made his major league debut and was hitless in five at-bats against the Cincinnati Reds' left-hander Joe Nuxhall. In the same game, Eddie Mathews hit two home runs, the first of a record 863 home runs the pair would hit as teammates. On April 15, Aaron collected his first major league hit, a double off Cardinals' pitcher Vic Raschi. Aaron hit his first major league home run on April 23, also off Raschi. Over the next 122 games, Aaron batted .280 with 13 homers before he suffered a fractured ankle on September 5. He then changed his number to 44, which would turn out to look like a "lucky number" for the slugger. Aaron would hit 44 home runs in four different seasons, and he hit his record-breaking 715th career home run off Dodgers pitcher Al Downing, who coincidentally also wore number 44.


title: Hank Aaron

text: At this point, Aaron was known to family and friends primarily as "Henry". Braves' public relations director Don Davidson, observing Aaron's quiet, reserved nature, began referring to him publicly as "Hank" in order to suggest more accessibility. The nickname quickly gained currency, but "Henry" continued to be cited frequently in the media, both sometimes appearing in the same article, and Aaron would answer to either one. During his rookie year, his other well-known nicknames, "Hammerin' Hank" (by teammates) and "Bad Henry" (by opposing pitchers) are reported to have arisen.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Considerably later in his career, Aaron coined "Stone-fingers", which would prove a popular handle for one of baseball's more colorful characters, the famously distance-hitting but defensively challenged first baseman Dick Stuart, reportedly "delight[ing]" even its recipient.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Sal Maglie recommended throwing low curveballs to Aaron. "He's going to swing and he'll go after almost anything," Maglie said of the Braves' slugger. "And he'll hit almost anything, so you have to be careful."


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron hit .314 with 27 home runs and 106 RBIs, in 1955. He was named to the NL All-Star roster for the first time; it was the first of a record 21 All-Star selections and first of a record 25 All-Star Game appearances. In 1956, Aaron hit .328 and captured the first of two NL batting titles. He was also named "The Sporting News" NL Player of the Year. In 1957, Aaron won his only NL MVP Award, as he had his first brush with the triple crown. He batted .322, placing third, and led the league in home runs and runs batted in. On September 23, 1957, in Milwaukee, Aaron hit a two-run walk-off home run against the St. Louis Cardinals, clinching the pennant for the Braves. After touching home plate he was carried off the field by his teammates. It is as of yet the only pennant-clinching walk-off home run in major league history in a non-playoff regular-season game. Milwaukee went on to win the World Series against the New York Yankees, the defending champions, 4 games to 3. Aaron did his part by hitting .393 with three homers and seven RBIs. On December 15, 1957, his wife Barbara gave birth to twins. Two days later, one of the children died. In 1958, Aaron hit .326, with 30 home runs and 95 RBIs. He led the Braves to another pennant, but this time they lost a seven-game World Series to the Yankees. Aaron finished third in the MVP race and he received his first of three Gold Glove Awards. During the next several years, Aaron had some of his best games and best seasons as a major league player. On June 21, 1959, against the San Francisco Giants, he hit three two-run home runs. It was the only time in his career that he hit three home runs in a game.


title: Hank Aaron

text: In 1963, Aaron nearly won the triple crown. He led the league with 44 home runs and 130 RBIs and finished third in batting average. In that season, Aaron became the third player to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in a single season, and the first player to record 40 home runs and 30 steals in a season. He again finished third in National League MVP voting. The Braves moved from Milwaukee to Atlanta after the 1965 season. On May 10, 1967, he hit an inside-the-park home run against Jim Bunning in Philadelphia. It was the only inside-the-park home run of his career. In 1968, Aaron was the first Atlanta Braves player to hit his 500th career home run, and in 1970, he was the first Atlanta Brave to reach 3,000 career hits.


title: Hank Aaron

text: During his days in Atlanta, Aaron reached several milestones; he was only the eighth player ever to hit 500 career home runs, with his 500th coming against Mike McCormick of the San Francisco Giants on July 14, 1968 — exactly one year after former Milwaukee Braves teammate Eddie Mathews had hit his 500th. Aaron was, at the time, the second-youngest player to reach the milestone. On July 31, 1969, Aaron hit his 537th home run, passing Mickey Mantle's total; this moved Aaron into third place on the career home run list, after Willie Mays and Babe Ruth. At the end of the 1969 season, Aaron again finished third in the MVP voting.


title: Hank Aaron

text: In 1970, Aaron reached two more career milestones. On May 17, Aaron collected his 3,000th hit, in a game against the Cincinnati Reds, the team against which he played in his first major-league game. Aaron established the record for most seasons with thirty or more home runs in the National League. On April 27, 1971, Aaron hit his 600th career home run, the third major league player ever to do so. On July 13, Aaron hit a home run in the All-Star Game (played at Detroit's Tiger Stadium) for the first time. He hit his 40th home run of the season against the Giants' Jerry Johnson on August 10, which established a National League record for most seasons with 40 or more home runs (seven). At age 37, he hit a career-high 47 home runs during the season (along with a career-high .669 slugging percentage) and finished third in MVP voting for the sixth time. During the strike-shortened season of 1972, Aaron tied and then surpassed Willie Mays for second place on the career home run list. Aaron also drove in the 2,000th run of his career and hit a home run in the first All-Star game played in Atlanta. As the year came to a close, Aaron broke Stan Musial's major-league record for total bases (6,134), the record he was the most proud of since it reflected his overall performance as a hitter and team player. Aaron finished the season with 673 career home runs.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron himself downplayed the "chase" to surpass Babe Ruth, while baseball enthusiasts and the national media grew increasingly excited as he closed in on the 714 career home runs record. Aaron received thousands of letters every week during the summer of 1973, including hate mail; the Braves ended up hiring a secretary to help him sort through it.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron (then age 39) hit 40 home runs in 392 at-bats, ending the 1973 season one home run short of the record. He hit home run number 713 on September 29, 1973, and with one day remaining in the season, many expected him to tie the record. But in his final game that year, playing against the Houston Astros (managed by Leo Durocher, who had once roomed with Babe Ruth), he was unable to achieve this. After the game, Aaron said his only fear was that he might not live to see the 1974 season.


title: Hank Aaron

text: He was the recipient of death threats and a large assortment of hate mail during the 1973–1974 offseason from people who did not want to see Aaron break Ruth's nearly sacrosanct home run record. The threats extended to those providing positive press coverage of Aaron. Lewis Grizzard, then-executive sports editor of the "Atlanta Journal", reported receiving numerous phone calls calling journalists "nigger lovers" for covering Aaron's chase. While preparing the massive coverage of the home run record, he quietly had an obituary written, afraid that Aaron might be murdered.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Is this to be the year in which Aaron, at the age of thirty-nine, takes a moon walk above one of the most hallowed individual records in American sport...? Or will it be remembered as the season in which Aaron, the most dignified of athletes, was besieged with hate mail and trapped by the cobwebs and goblins that lurk in baseball's attic?


title: Hank Aaron

text: At the end of the 1973 season, Aaron received a plaque from the U.S. Postal Service for receiving more mail (930,000 pieces) than any person excluding politicians. Aaron received an outpouring of public support in response to the bigotry. Newspaper cartoonist Charles Schulz created a series of "Peanuts" strips printed in August 1973 in which Snoopy attempts to break the Ruth record, only to be besieged with hate mail. Lucy says in the August 11 strip, "Hank Aaron is a great player... but you! If you break Babe Ruth's record, it'll be a disgrace!" Coincidentally, Snoopy was only one home run short of tying the record (and finished the season as such when Charlie Brown got picked off during Snoopy's last at-bat), and as it turned out, Aaron finished the 1973 season one home run short of Ruth. Babe Ruth's widow, Claire Hodgson, denounced the racism and declared that her husband would have enthusiastically cheered Aaron's attempt at the record. As the 1974 season began, Aaron's pursuit of the record caused a small controversy. The Braves opened the season on the road in Cincinnati with a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds. Braves management wanted him to break the record in Atlanta and was therefore going to have Aaron sit out the first three games of the season. But Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn ruled that he had to play two games in the first series. He played two out of three and tied Babe Ruth's record on April 4, 1974, in his very first at-bat on his first swing of the season—off Reds pitcher Jack Billingham, but did not hit another home run in the series.


title: Hank Aaron

text: The Braves returned to Atlanta, and on April 8, 1974, a crowd of 53,775 people showed up for the game — a Braves attendance record. The game was also broadcast nationally on NBC. In the fourth inning, Aaron hit home run number 715 off Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Al Downing. Although Dodgers outfielder Bill Buckner nearly went over the outfield fence trying to catch it, the ball flew into the Braves' bullpen, where relief pitcher Tom House caught it. While cannons were fired in celebration, two college students sprinted onto the field and jogged alongside Aaron for part of his circuit around the bases, temporarily startling him. A young Craig Sager actually interviewed Aaron between third and home for a television station, WXLT (now WWSB-Channel 40) in Sarasota. As the fans cheered wildly, Aaron's parents ran onto the field as well. Braves announcer Milo Hamilton, calling the game on WSB radio, described the scene as Aaron broke the record:


title: Hank Aaron

text: Meanwhile, Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully addressed the racial tension—or apparent lack thereof—in his call of the home run:


title: Hank Aaron

text: What a marvelous moment for baseball; what a marvelous moment for Atlanta and the state of Georgia; what a marvelous moment for the country and the world. A black man is getting a standing ovation in the Deep South for breaking a record of an all-time baseball idol. And it is a great moment for all of us, and particularly for Henry Aaron... And for the first time in a long time, that poker face in Aaron shows the tremendous strain and relief of what it must have been like to live with for the past several months.


title: Hank Aaron

text: On October 2, 1974, Aaron hit his 733rd home run in his last at-bat as a Braves player. Aaron commented after the game that it was his last time as a player in Atlanta as his contract had expired. While he considered retirement, he said that he was willing to return to baseball for another year. He had also said that he would be interested in serving as a team's general manager, someone who would make decisions and not a “house boy”. The Braves offered Aaron a position with the team when he retired, but the role would be more in public relations, rather than one where he could evaluate talent.


title: Hank Aaron

text: At the end of the season, Aaron, who had a prior relationship with Brewers owner Bud Selig, requested a trade to Milwaukee. He was acquired by the Milwaukee Brewers for Dave May thirty-one days later on November 2. Minor league right-handed pitcher Roger Alexander was sent to the Braves to complete the transaction at the Winter Meetings one month later on December 2. The trade re-united Aaron with former teammate Del Crandall, who was now managing the Brewers. He signed a two-year contract with the Brewers for $240,000 per year. Playing in the American League would allow Aaron to serve as a designated hitter rather than play in the field.


title: Hank Aaron

text: On May 1, 1975, Aaron broke baseball's all-time RBI record, previously held by Ruth with 2,213. That year, he also played in his last and 24th All-Star Game (25th All-Star Game selection); he lined out to Dave Concepción as a pinch-hitter in the second inning. This All-Star Game, like the first one he played in 1955, was before a home crowd at Milwaukee County Stadium.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron hit his 755th and final home run on July 20, 1976, at Milwaukee County Stadium off Dick Drago of the California Angels, which stood as the MLB career home run record for 31 years until it was broken in 2007 by Barry Bonds. Over the course of his record-breaking 23-year career, Aaron had a batting average of .305 and 163 hits a season, while averaging just over 32 home runs and 99 RBIs a year. He had 100+ RBIs in a season 15 times, including a record of 13 in a row.


title: Hank Aaron

text: After the 1976 season, Aaron rejoined the Braves as an executive. On August 1, 1982, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, having received votes on 97.8 percent of the ballots, second only to Ty Cobb, who had received votes on 98.2% of the ballot in the inaugural 1936 Hall of Fame election. Aaron was then named the Braves' vice president and director of player development. This made him one of the first minorities in Major League Baseball upper-level management.


title: Hank Aaron

text: In December 1980, Aaron became senior vice president and assistant to the Braves' president. He was the corporate vice president of community relations for Turner Broadcasting System, a member of the company's board of directors, and the vice president of business development for The Airport Network. On January 21, 2007, Major League Baseball announced the sale of the Atlanta Braves. In that announcement, Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig also announced that Aaron would be playing a major role in the management of the Braves, forming programs through major league baseball that will encourage the influx of minorities into baseball. Aaron founded the Hank Aaron Rookie League program.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron's autobiography, "I Had a Hammer" was published in 1990. The book's title is a play on his nickname, "The Hammer" or "Hammerin' Hank", and the title of the folk song "If I Had a Hammer". Aaron owned Hank Aaron BMW of south Atlanta in Union City, Georgia, where he included an autographed baseball with every car sold. Aaron also owned Mini, Land Rover, Toyota, Hyundai, and Honda dealerships throughout Georgia, as part of the Hank Aaron Automotive Group. Aaron sold all but the Toyota dealership in McDonough in 2007. Additionally, Aaron owned a chain of 30 restaurants around the country.


title: Hank Aaron

text: During the 2006 season, San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds passed Babe Ruth and moved into second place on the all-time home run list, attracting growing media coverage as he drew closer to Aaron's record. Playing off the intense interest in their perceived rivalry, Aaron and Bonds made a television commercial that aired during Super Bowl XLI, shortly before the start of the 2007 baseball season, in which Aaron jokingly tried to persuade Bonds to retire before breaking the record. As Bonds began to close in on the record during the 2007 season, Aaron let it be known that, although he recognized Bonds' achievements, he would not be present when Bonds broke the record. There was considerable speculation that this was a snubbing of Bonds based on the widespread belief that Bonds had used performance-enhancing drugs and steroids to aid his achievement. However, some observers looked back on Aaron's personal history, pointing out that he had downplayed his own breaking of Babe Ruth's all-time record and suggesting Aaron was simply treating Bonds in a similar fashion. In a later interview with Atlanta sportscasting personality Chris Dimino, Aaron made it clear his reluctance to attend any celebration of a new home run record was based upon his personal conviction that baseball is not about breaking records, but simply playing to the best of one's potential. After Bonds hit his record-breaking 756th home run on August 7, 2007, Aaron made a surprise appearance on the JumboTron video screen at AT&T Park in San Francisco to congratulate Bonds on his accomplishment:


title: Hank Aaron

text: On January 5, 2021, Aaron publicly received a COVID-19 vaccination with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at the Morehouse School of Medicine at Atlanta, Georgia. He and several other African American public figures, including activist Joe Beasley, Andrew Young, and Louis Sullivan did so to demonstrate the safety of the vaccine and encourage other black Americans to do the same.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Aaron died in his sleep in his Atlanta residence on January 22 at the age of 86. The manner of death was listed as natural causes.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Upon Aaron's death, the sports world expressed their condolences to him. Many current or former athletes and team owners such as MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, Magic Johnson, David Ortiz, Dusty Baker, Eduardo Pérez, Mike Trout, and Baseball Hall of Fame chairman Jane Forbes Clark paid tribute to him. Fans paid tribute to Aaron by placing flowers in front of the home run wall where he hit his 715th home run at the former site of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and in front of his statue at Truist Park.


title: Hank Aaron

text: Politicians also paid tribute to him. Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms released the following statement on his death: