Customarily, a statue is erected in honor of a person’s deeds or accomplishments after they have passed away.
Only a few politicians and humanitarians are considered worthy of such distinction while still alive—one prominent example is President Jimmy Carter, whose monumental statue can be found on the grounds of the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta.
The “wait until they die” tradition is less adhered to when it comes to sportpersons who have excelled for their teams. The statue of legendary 49ers quarterback Joe Montana has pride of place outside Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco, and one depicting basketball great Magic Johnson has been installed outside Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena. Many European and South American soccer teams also erect statues to their past heroes after their playing days are over.
Please login or subscribe to view the complete article.