Lisbon (AFP)
Cristiano Ronaldo, accused of rape last year before US justice decides not to prosecute him for lack of evidence, estimated that 2018 was the year the "most difficult on a personal level", in an interview released Tuesday by Portuguese television.
"2018 was the most difficult year on a personal level," said the Portuguese player in an interview broadcast Tuesday night by the TV channel TVI.
"When people question your honor, it hurts." It hurts a lot mainly because I have a big family, a wife and a smart child who understands a lot of things, "he added.
"It's a case I'm not comfortable talking about, but once again my innocence has been proven, which makes me proud," he said.
The US justice decided last July not to charge the Portuguese footballer for rape, for lack of evidence.
A former American model, Kathryn Mayorga, 35, accused the five-time Golden Ball of having raped her in 2009 in a hotel room in Las Vegas. The former star of Manchester United and Real Madrid, who currently plays Juventus Turin, has always denied these allegations.
On June 13, 2009, the complainant called the Las Vegas police to report a rape but refused to identify her attacker. The file was then closed. In 2010, she had a civil agreement with Cristiano Ronaldo on this subject. In August 2018, she had re-contacted the Las Vegas police requesting the reopening of her file and had accused the footballer for the first time.
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