It’s a sad day in the life of sports fans and comedians everywhere. Well, maybe at least for those who weren’t at the short-end of Paul’s prescient picks. Paul the octopus, or Pulpo Paul as he was more affectionately known by the Spanish, reportedly died today of natural causes at his home at the Sea Life aquarium in the German city of Oberhausen. Paul garnered international fame this summer during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa by correctly picking the winner in all seven of Germany’s matches and the World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands. Paul’s mesmerizing psychic feats were feted across the land from Amsterdam to Zimbabwe. In the weeks following the Cup, Paul parlayed his success into a brief but well-publicized advertising career as his agent vetted more than 160 endorsement offers.
Paul was born at the Weymouth Sea Life Center on England’s south coast in 2008. He was two-and-a-half years old when he passed away. Octopi like Paul typically have very short life spans. Tanja Munzig, a spokeswoman for Sea Life, recalled Paul’s gift for delighting aquarium-going children before and after his World Cup fame. Paul is not known to be survived by any living relatives.
For more on the amazing story of Paul’s perfect World Cup run, see the post An Ode to Paul the Psychic Octopus.
Source:
Associated Press. Paul, the World Cup Predicting Octopus, Dies at 2 1/2. Chicago Sun-Times. October 26, 2010.