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Miroslav Klose celebrates 36th birthday and hopes to break World Cup scoring record

Associated Press
Published | Updated

German's national soccer player Miroslav Klose dances with Brazilian indigenous after a training near Porto Seguro, Brazil, Monday, June 9, 2014. Germany will play in group G of the 2014 soccer World Cup. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader) (The Associated Press)

Brazilian Indians watch Germany's national soccer team during a training session near Porto Seguro, Brazil, Monday, June 9, 2014. Germany will play in group G of Brazil's 2014 soccer World Cup. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader) (The Associated Press)

Inside a circle of dancers wearing native costumes, Miroslav Klose stood out as he celebrated his birthday in unusual style on Monday.

It wasn't a traditional "Happy Birthday" rendering for the Germany striker, but neither was the setting: a training pitch on an isolated patch of land on Brazil's Atlantic coast.

Klose had just finished a fast-paced training session in hot and humid conditions but he was a willing participant in the little show.

The striker turned 36 on Monday and even being in Brazil was a little surprise. Klose had said after South Africa in 2010 that he'd probably played his last World Cup.

Four years later, Klose is not only in Germany's squad, he is coach Joachim Loew's only real traditional striker, a dying breed in the Bundesliga.