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Daily Record
Daily Record
Health
Rory Cassidy

Cristiano Ronaldo in £1m coronavirus donation to build intensive care wards

Cristiano Ronaldo and his agent have donated £1million to help in the fight against coronavirus.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner's huge sum will be used to help build new intensive care wards in hospitals in his homeland of Portugal.

The Juventus forward has been in isolation since the outbreak, and teammates Paulo Dybala, Blaise Matuidi and Daniele Rugani have all tested positive for the deadly COVID-19 strain.

The 35-year-old, and agent Jorge Mendes, have now donated $1.8million to hospitals in Porto and Lisbon.

The cash will help staff in San Antonio hospital, in Porto, and Santa Maria hospital, in the Portuguese capital Lisbon, where Ronaldo played for Sporting Lisbon, with crucial medical equipment and beds as the country continues to tackle the coronavirus.

Santa Maria hospital announced in a statement that 10 beds will be issued per ward as well as more ventilators, heart monitors, infusion pumps and syringes. 

And Porto's Santo Antonio hospital stated they will receive 15 intensive care beds, as well as monitors and ventilators.

The country has over 3,000 confirmed cases of the virus, resulting in 43 deaths, with the figures rising daily.

Ronaldo, who made his 1,000th professional appearance earlier this month before the postponement of Serie A, has been providing care for his mother in Madeira, who is recovering from a stroke.

Daniel Ferro, president of Santa Maria, said: "We were contacted by Jorge Mendes, who volunteered with Cristiano Ronaldo to finance two intensive care units for critical patients suffering from COVID-19.

"There are fans, monitors, infusion pumps, beds ... all the equipment that constitutes an intensive care unit equipped to provide care to a COVID-19 patient."

Centro Hospitalar Universitario do Porto president, Paulo Barbosa, said: "This unit will allow the opening of 15 intensive care beds, fully equipped with fans, monitors and other equipment.

"The Centro Hospitalar Universitario do Porto thanks Cristiano Ronaldo and Jorge Mendes for this very useful initiative, at a time when the country needs everyone so much."

Mendes has also donated 1,000 masks and 200,000 gowns to Sao Joao hospital in Porto and helped fund eight new ventilators for other Portuguese hospitals.

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