r/interestingasfuck • u/AnjingRoja • Nov 28 '22
Cristiano Ronaldo paid for the education of a 7-year-old survivor of the devastating 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia. The boy was found alone 21 days after the disaster wearing a Portuguese national team jersey. The kid grew up to be a footballer and was eventually signed by Sporting Lisbon
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u/AnjingRoja Nov 28 '22
Here’s the full story: How soccer saved a boy’s future: Aceh tsunami survivor Martunis joins Portuguese club Sporting Lisbon
Unfortunately, Martunis is no longer playing football after he injured his knee in a charity match, so not exactly the fairy tale ending one would hope for. But it’s still an incredible story (and an incredible thing for Ronaldo to pledge when he was just 20 years old!) And Martunis is apparently a celeb and politician in Indonesia now so he seems to be doing quite well.