Antonio Rudiger has recently spoken about the tricky upbringing he had in Berlin as a child, although not altogether negatively. The central defender still shares a strong relationship with Sierra Leone though, the native home of his mother, and this World Cup is backing up his foundation with all of the money he would have made from the World Cup.
Rudiger has a charity in Lunsar, where his mother Lily resides, which will now use that money to pay for the operations of eleven children born with congenital foot defects, or club foot. He explained to Marca.
“It hurts to see the circumstances in which Sierra Leonean children grow up. During surgery, the misalignment is corrected before patients can finally walk and participate in social life, after several months of follow-up treatment.”
Rudiger will be representing Germany in the World Cup but is part of a large section of German footballers descended from immigrant parents. His fortune was not lost on him.
“In Germany I have been given opportunities that many people in Sierra Leone are denied. I am grateful for these opportunities and I greatly appreciate the privileged position I find myself in. Helping here is a matter of honour for me. I would like to implement many more projects in Sierra Leone with my family in the future.”
Rudiger also spoke of his tricky upbringing as one of the happiest times of his life too. Rudiger highlighted the importance of being together with his family, in spite of the adversity he faced.
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