Many twists of life: A moving story of Ronaldo and his Tsunami devastated young Indonesian fan
When the devastating Tsunami struck several Asian countries on December 26th, 2004, an eight-year-old boy, Martunis, was washed away from his home in Banda Aceh. He managed to cling onto a piece of furniture and was then washed up to an uninhabited island.
There the little boy managed to survive for more than 20 days by eating fruits and berries. When he was finally discovered and rescued, he was in bad shape. All he was wearing was a football shirt from his favourite football team, namely Portugal. Later he revealed that he was a Portugal supporter because he was a fan of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Martunis had been playing football with his friends before he was knocked unconscious and swept away by a giant wave. That boy, who is now a grown-up young man, explained that when he regained consciousness, he found himself on top of a mattress. When that too sank under the water, he found a tree trunk nearby and clung to it. The tree trunk took him to an area that was far away from his village on another island.
There he survived with great difficulty till he was spotted by a camera crew. Due to the dehydration that he had suffered, he needed a saline drip and his condition was extremely bad. A member of the team that found him said that if he had not been found that day, he could have perished. Later on, Martunis was reunited with his father. But sadly his mother and sister had been washed away.
In far away Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo heard about the boy who had miraculously survived. He was a big fan of the Portugal football team and himself. The football star was struck with emotions too strong for words. He felt he must do his utmost to help the little boy who was his ardent fan.
Ronaldo flew all the way to Indonesia to meet the boy and presented him with clothes and cash. He also made a commitment to meet his education costs and rebuild his home. Over the years Ronaldo continued to provide for his needs. The child whose life had been wrecked by the tsunami was given a second chance by Ronaldo.
Thanks to Ronaldo’s encouragement, Martunis began playing football again. He played football up to the professional club level but that was as far as his career could progress. He could not make it to the top tier and when he realised it, he gave up sport and decided to go into business.
Now Martunis considers Cristiano Ronaldo as his adoptive father. He’s taken the name “Martinis Ronaldo” on his Facebook page. He can be found on Facebook. So that is how the world’s most famous football star made a difference in the life of one of his devoted fans. Ronaldo gave a new life and changed the fortunes of the little boy who was affected by the disastrous Tsunami that happened 20 years ago.
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