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There’s a moment in Youth, director Paolo Sorrentino’s uneven but frequently hilarious follow-up to his masterpiece, The Great Beauty, that seems to sum up the nature of celebrity in the modern age. “But who were you? Who? That’s what I always ask myself,” Rachel Weisz’s character demands of her father, a once-famous composer now living out the remainder of his days in a strange, sterile Swiss health farm. The famous become alien even to their closest family members and friends, Sorrentino seems to suggest, let alone to those who seek to peer into their lives from the outside. It’s a theme that seems applicable to Cristiano Ronaldo, the world’s most famous footballer if not one of the world’s most famous faces, period. The public knows a little about Ronaldo, the Portuguese forward who made his name at Sporting Lisbon and Manchester United before magnifying his fame at Real Madrid, many times over. We know he grew up on the small Portuguese island of Madeira, that he dotes over his mother, that he is almost fanatically committed to keeping his body healthy. That he has three children with another on the way, the first born to a surrogate mother in the United States. Glimpses through a frosted window-pane—even a long-form 2016 piece in GQ seemed designed to show you can get close to Ronaldo, physically, and remain at several arms’ lengths. Keep up with this story and more by subscribing now Perhaps it shouldn’t be such a surprise that if Ronaldo were ever going to open the window a little more, it should be to the Players’ Tribune. Sportspeople seem to like Derek Jeter’s publication, and with reason. They can be heard, or read, in their own words; they can transmit the message they want. Sometimes that is a problem in the case of controversies, but it can also produce unexpectedly honest results. With a pen, or keyboard, rather than a microphone and journalist comes a certain increase in freedom, a decrease in tension. Jeter, the face of the New York Yankees turned Miami Marlins co-owner, has got Ronaldo to divulge details on his life and emotions. In a piece penned for the website and published on Tuesday, Ronaldo indulges in a little Proustian reminiscence about his childhood. “I would look to the sidelines before every match and see my dad standing there alone,” he writes. “Then one day—I will never forget this image—I was warming up and looked over and I saw my mom and sisters sitting together on the bleachers. They looked...how do I say this? They looked cozy. They were kind of huddled close together, and they were not clapping or yelling, they were just waving to me, like I was in a parade or something. They definitely looked like they had never been to a football match before. But they were there. That’s all I cared about.” “When you lose, it’s like you’re starving. When you win, it’s still like you’re starving, but you ate a little crumb. This is the only way I can explain it.” Ronaldo writes later in the piece. It’s good stuff—the kind of insight into the mind of an uber-elite athlete that he would never give you on your terms. Ronaldo even gives insight into the most private part of his very private life, his children. “When I was on the pitch after the final whistle [of the 2017 Champions League final won by Real Madrid], it felt like I had sent a message to the world,” he writes. “But then my son came on the field to celebrate with me... and it was like the snap of a finger. Suddenly, the entire emotion changed.” It’s kind of odd, perhaps, that a former baseball icon got a European football icon to provide more emotion than he ever has in a newspaper interview. This is probably as open as Ronaldo is ever going to be, so make the most of it. |
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Teammates and fans have paid tributes to the former Newcastle United and Ivory Coast midfielder Cheick Tiote who collapsed and died during a training session in China on Monday. Tiote, 30, was taken to hospital after collapsing during training with Beijing Enterprises, which he joined four months ago. His agent Emanuele Palladino confirmed his death later that day. “It is with deep sadness that I confirm that my client Cheick Tiote sadly passed away earlier today after collapsing in training with his club Beijing Enterprises,” Palladino said, as quoted by Sky Sports News. Keep up with this story and more by subscribing now Tiote represented the Ivory Coast on 52 occasions, and was with the national team from 2009 through 2015. His teammates expressed their sorrow at the news of his death on Twitter to express the upset at the news of his death. Former Ivory Coast captain and Chelsea striker Didier Drogba said he had “no words” while Manchester City’s Yaya Toure described Tiote as his brother. “I cannot believe you’re gone. I will never forget you,” he wrote. Tiote spent six seasons with Newcastle United, and the city’s newspaper, The Chronicle, paid tribute to him on its front page: Chris Hughton, manager of Brighton and Hove Albion, signed Tiote for Newcastle in 2010 from Dutch club FC Twente. Speaking to BBC 5 Live, Hughton described him as the “perfect fit” for Newcastle. “The thing that struck me was how humble he was. It was such a big thing for him to sign for Newcastle,” Hughton said. “I remember speaking to Steve McClaren [Twente manager at the time] before we took him and Steve spoke very, very fondly about him, not only as a footballer but as a person and a person that wouldn’t let you down. And McClaren described Tiote as a man with “the most beautiful smile in football.” Also speaking to BBC 5 Live, McClaren said: “He was the toughest player I’ve ever seen. “Some days we would have to pull him out of training because he was such a ferocious competitor, such a winner. He was a warrior and could play too. It was his dream to play in China and I was so delighted for him when it happened. He earned money to look after his family.” The current Newcastle boss Rafa Benitez said: “In all the time that I have known him, he was a true professional, dedicated and above all, a great man. Our hearts go out to his family and friends at such a sad time.” Tiote began his career in Belgium, as one of the stars in a young Anderlecht squad that included Vincent Kompany, the Manchester City defender. Kompany called Tiote one of the “nicest and toughest” teammates he’d played alongside. Kompany also spoke to Sky Sports News. “I’ve got very vivid memories of him. He was one of the young guys coming up when I was coming up at Anderlecht and he was a warrior even at that age,” Kompany said. “He was one of the toughest players I have ever played with and everybody remembers the greatest Newcastle team of recent years and he was at the heart of that.” Tiote played alongside Vurnon Anita in the middle of that Newcastle midfield, and the Dutch international has spoken of his character at the club. “I’m completely at a loss for words on the passing of my great friend and team-mate Cheick Tiote,” he said, as quoted by The Chronicle. “You were always a light in a dark room. Your presence, your jokes and personality made us all very happy," he said. “To know that our conversation two days ago would be our very last is heartbreaking." Tags: inhandnetworks, InHand Networks - Global Leader in Industrial IoT, Global Leader in Industrial IoTn>, android-computer, iot, industrial-iot |