TURIN, January 30, 2008 (CWNews.com/LifeSiteNews.com) - In an interview for the Italian magazine Sportsweek, a star defender from Turin, Italy's Juventus soccer club, Nicola Legrottaglie, revealed that two years ago he made the decision to abstain from pre-marital sex.
Legrottaglie said, "I have not had sex in two years and honestly, it has not been a burden." The soccer player spoke candidly about his past exploits, saying that if he did not make a conquest every few days, "I panicked." Reflecting on that experience now, he said: "One who is unable to live without sex, in the end, becomes a slave."
The Juventus star told Sportsweek that he has chosen abstinence "not because I do not like women, but because I am waiting for the right woman with whom to have a family, a woman who shares the same values."
Legrottaglie's remarks are reminiscent of a June, 2007 incident, when a Brazilian soccer superstar responded in Vanity Fair to comments by a Brazilian supermodel.
"Today no one is a virgin when they get married ... show me someone who's a virgin!" said supermodel Gisele Bundchen at the time. She also criticized the Catholic Church's moral teachings, saying, "How is it possible to not want people to use condoms and also not have abortions? It's impossible, I'm sorry."
However, Brazilian soccer superstar Ricardo Izecson Santos Leite responded to Bundchen's outburst, saying that both he and his wife, Caroline, were virgins when they got married. Ricardo, one of Brazil's most successful soccer players, has long been known for both his outspoken Christian faith and his remarkable good looks.
"The Bible teaches that true love waits until marriage," Ricardo told "Vanity Fair", saying about his marriage, "If our life today is so beautiful, I think it is because we waited."
The time prior to his and his wife's marriage, during which they conducted a chaste relationships, says Ricardo, "was important, as it tested our love." The soccer star admitted that it was not easy to stay a virgin until his wedding night, and that even still there are difficulties in living faithfully, saying that "there are always temptations." But he also says that the sacrifices that he and his wife made for each other have been more than worth it.
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Brazilian Soccer Heartthrob's Response to Supermodel's Anti-Catholic Outburst: I Was a Virgin When I Got Married
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/jun/07060705.html
