Pope Francis acknowledged "serious mistakes" in handling Chile's sex abuse scandal, calling regional bishops to an emergency meeting in Rome. He blamed a lack of "truthful and balanced information" for misjudging the situation and incited Chile’s Catholics to protests in January.

• Pope
  (1936–)

Che Guevara was a Marxist revolutionary allied with Fidel Castro during the Cuban Revolution.

• Military Leader
  (1928–1967)

Eva Perón used her position as the first lady of Argentina to fight for women's suffrage and improving the lives of the poor.

• Actress, Politician
  (1919–1952)

Argentina native Lionel Messi has established records for goals scored and won individual awards en route to worldwide recognition as one of the best players in soccer.

• Children's Activist, Soccer Player
  (1987–)

Argentine tennis player Juan Martin del Potro upset Roger Federer to win the 2009 U.S. Open singles title.

• Tennis Player
  (1988–)

Juan Perón was a military officer and politician who was elected president of Argentina three times.

• President (non-U.S.), Military Leader
  (1895–1974)

Uruguayan-born writer Horacio Quiroga penned short stories inspired by the jungle before committing suicide in 1937. He is considered among the greatest Latin American storytellers of all time.

• Journalist, Author
  (1878–1937)

Argentine soccer great Alfredo Di Stéfano won two European Player of the Year awards and led Real Madrid to a record five straight European Cup championships.

• Soccer Player
  (1926–2014)

Soccer great Diego Maradona led Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup, though his accomplishments were later overshadowed by his battles with drug abuse.

• Soccer Player
  (1960–)

Luis Federico Leloir received the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery and study of sugar nucleotides.

• Chemist, Scientist
  (1906–1987)

Bernardo Alberto Houssay was an Argentinian doctor whose research on the role of pituitary hormones regulating blood sugar won him a Nobel Prize.

• Physiologist, Doctor, Scientist
  (1887–1971)

Jorge Luis Borges was an Argentine poet, essayist, and short-story writer whose works have become classics of 20th-century world literature.

• Journalist, Author, Poet
  (1899–1986)

Argentine musician Astor Piazzolla composed and performed music for the bandoneón, and fused tango music with jazz and classical for a whole new sound.

• Songwriter
  (1921–1992)

General Jorge Rafaél Videla's government was responsible for a campaign of suppression and human rights abuses that became known as Argentina's "dirty war."

• Dictator, Murderer, General
  (1925–2013)

Domingo Faustino Sarmiento was a writer and scholar who became president of Argentina in 1868.

• Scholar, Historian, Sociologist, President (non-U.S.), Journalist, Educator
  (1811–1888)

Raúl Alfonsín was an Argentine lawyer, politician and is known best for being the first democratically elected president of Argentina.

• President (non-U.S.), Lawyer
  (1927–2009)

President of Guatemala Juan José Arévalo pursued a nationalistic foreign policy while internally encouraging the labor movement and instituting social reforms.

• President (non-U.S.)
  (1904–1990)

Isabel Peron is a former president of Argentina. She was the first non-royal female head of state in the Western Hemisphere.

• President (non-U.S.)
  (1931–)

Manuel Puig was an Argentine writer known for his film scripts and novels, notably Kiss of the Spider Woman.

• Screenwriter, Author
  (1932–1990)

César Milstein developed monoclonal antibody production and received a Nobel Prize in 1984. Monoclonal antibodies are used in pregnancy tests and diagnosing diseases.

• Scientist, Immunologist
  (1927–2002)

Known as "the father of the poor," Hipolito Irigoyen was Argentina's first president elected by its citizenry (1916).

• President (non-U.S.), Activist
  (1852–1933)

Argentine soldier, statesman, and national hero José de San Martín helped lead the revolutions against Spanish rule in Argentina, Chile and Peru.

• Military Leader
  (1778–1850)