Lula da Silva | The Pele of Brazil’s politics

With a smirk, Flávio Bolsonaro squinted at the camera and called President Lula da Silva “nine fingers” in the televised debate just two days before Brazil went to the polls for the presidential runoff. It was a cynical attempt to weaponise an old scar – and a gossip – against the Workers Party’s leader. Lula reacted sharply, reminding the audience how he had lost a finger on his left hand while working in a factory. “If there is anyone who lost a finger at the age of 17, it was me, working at night because I had to work,” Lula said, staring into the cameras. A red-faced Flavio didn’t know where to look. On October 25, Lula made history by becoming the first Brazilian president to finish second in the first round of an election, held on October 4, and go on to win the presidency in the run-off.

Ever since Lula entered politics more than three decades ago, his opponents have peddled the rumour that he deliberately chopped off his own finger to gain sympathy and claim compensation. But those familiar with his life know the struggles that shaped him. Born on October 27, 1945, in a dusty corner of Brazil, Lula grew up amid hunger and deprivation in the state of Pernambuco.