Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has been awarded "substantial" damages from U.K. tabloid Daily Telegraph over a 2008 story that alleged the soccer star had partied too much shortly after ankle surgery, risking re-injury.
'I WOULD NEVER JEOPARDIZE MY TRAINING'
Ronaldo, 25, tweeted Nov. 9, 2010 that he was happy with the judge's ruling, saying:
I am pleased with the court's decision. I take pride in my professionalism & would never jeopardize my training in the manner accused.
In July 2008, Cristiano, who was then with British soccer club Manchester United, traveled to Los Angeles to attend the ESPY Awards shortly afer undergoing ankle surgery.
Ronaldo had injured the ankle during a soccer match and was unable to play for the remaining two months of the 2008 season.
The Daily Telegraph published an article claiming Cristiano had risked further injury by dancing at a Hollywood nightclub until the wee hours of the morning.
While Ronaldo has a reputation as a womanizing party animal, he's also known for his intense work ethic and dedication to fitness. He filed a lawsuit against the Telegraph alleging the report embarrassed him and damaged his professional reputation.
CRISTIANO GOT DAMAGES & APOLOGY
On Nov. 8, 2010, a judge at London's High Court ruled in Cristiano's favor and awarded the star (who was not present at the hearing) "substantial" libel damages. The Daily Telegraph also published the following apology Nov. 9:
On 18th July 2008 we published an article on page S8 (and online), headed “Ronaldo back in the limelight”. It appeared alongside a photo of Cristiano Ronaldo on crutches in Los Angeles, where he had travelled to attend a Sports Award ceremony to which he had been invited, and for which he was nominated for an award as Best Male International Athlete.
We reported that he had “headed straight for” a trendy Hollywood nightclub. We described how Cristiano put his crutches down to take to the dance floor with four models before being served “£10,000 worth of Cristal champagne”.
The article alleged that Cristiano was behaving unprofessionally and that the sight of Cristiano “living it up” in Los Angeles would dismay Manchester United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
We now accept that this is not true. Cristiano was in Los Angeles and did attend the nightclub but he did not drink any alcohol at all while there, or at any time in Los Angeles, and did not put his crutches down and try to dance despite the risk to his injured ankle.
Instead, he sat in a private corner as arranged in advance, along with friends who had travelled to Los Angeles with him, resting his foot and drinking non-alcoholic energy drinks at all times under the care of the respected Portuguese national team physio Antonio Gaspar.
We would like to apologise to Cristiano for the embarrassment and offence our report caused to him as a professional who takes his health, fitness and recovery from injury seriously and are happy to set the record straight.
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