A statue of Cristiano Ronaldo has been placed in Praça do Mar, a 3,40 metres high tribute.
Worldwide football star Cristiano Ronaldo now has his own statue in his hometown, Funchal. The sculpture has been carved in bronze by Madeiran sculptor Ricardo Veloza. It’s 3,40 metres high and weighs 800 kg.
The player’s pose is inspired by the way he prepares himself for the free-kicks: legs spread out in parallel and focused gaze. The statue can be found by Praça do Mar, the City’s waterfront area and a city’s gate for thousands of tourists that do not miss the chance to have their picture taken right next to the town’s trendiest attraction.
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born in Funchal on February 5th 1985. He began his career as a youth player for Andorinha and Nacional football clubs and left his family in Santo António at the age of 14 to move to Lisbon, where he began playing for Sporting Clube de Portugal.
15 years later he has won nearly every prize he could, including three Ballon d’Or awards (the third one was awarded to Ronaldo this year). Arguably the greatest Portuguese player of all time, this world football genious also has a museum named after him in within walking distance to the statue, where all hs trophies can be admired.
This was a way to pay tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo and the city he was born in, but it became a touristic location in the process. At the opening ceremony, the Real Madrid player/National team captain has thanked for the monument and confessed that in his opinion it’s best to honour people while they can still appreciate it, rather than waiting for them to pass away to do so.
