Al-Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Obsession can sometimes lead you to achieve extraordinary feats. Which is exactly what this man from China did to fulfill his wish of meeting football legend Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia—travelling 13,000 km on his bicycle.
In a report, South China Morning Post said that 24-year-old Gong, from eastern China’s Anhui province, travelled for almost seven months on a bicycle from his home to Riyadh, where he met the football icon, who currently plays for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.
Starting on March 18, Gong travelled first to Beijing, then started moving westwards. He crossed the border from Xinjiang province into Kazakhstan, from where he passed through six countries, including Georgia, Iran, and Qatar, before entering Saudi Arabia and then travelling to Riyadh.
On October 20, Gong met CR7 in front of the Al Nassr Football Club, fulfilling a dream he had since he was a child.
Gong said he was excited to see his “Brother Luo” in person (Cristiano is known as 'C Luo' in China).
Ronaldo was supposed to travel to China in February, but an injury meant he couldn't. Thus Gong came up with a plan to meet his idol anyway. Travelling a total of 13,000 km, all Gong had with him were two 60,000mAh power banks, a tent, cooking utensils, clothes, and some life essentials.
Throughout his journey, he lived as frugally as possible, sometimes even eating just bread to combat high cost of food.
Reportedly, he even suffered a high fever in Armenia, and collapsed on the roadside in Armenia, where he then received free treatment.
Gong said his journey let him make new friends, and made him become more patient and mature, SCMP reported.
Gong arrived on October 10, when Ronaldo was in Europe for a match, but the staff at Al Nassr FC promised to arrange a meet with the Portuguese star after seeing his dedication.
On October 19, Gong watched Ronaldo play live for the first time in the Chinese man's life, and subsequently CR7 met the super-fan on October 20.
In the “dreamlike” one minute, Gong said Ronaldo shook his hand, hugged him, and signed an Al Nassr No 7 jersey, and a banner that wrote Gong’s friends’ names and a sentence, “What I dream of is true love and freedom,” SCMP reported.
Gong plans to go to Portugal on his next trip.