Portuguese Olympic canoeist Fernando Pimenta performed a gesture of solidarity this weekend in Machico, helping a tourist whose vehicle suffered a flat tire. The great Portuguese champion has been in Madeira since last week for various sporting and cultural activities. This time, Fernando Pimenta added to his trophy cabinet as a great athlete, particularly in the social sphere, by working as a mechanic in his spare time.
According to the athlete himself on social media, the incident occurred when he heard “a noise and then the deflation of a tire.” Upon checking what was happening, he realized that “a man had tried to climb a sidewalk and had blown out his tire without realizing it.”
The athlete and a friend decided to warn the driver, who was preparing to continue his journey, and offered to help. “When he got out of the car, he asked what to do, since it was the weekend. I promptly offered to help him, as required by law,” explained Fernando Pimenta.
In good spirits, the champion described the tire change process. “Loosen the tire a little (a difficult task, it was very tight), jack up the car, change the tire, tighten it a little, lower the car, and tighten it firmly,” he begins by describing the process.
The tourist thanked them for their help, saying that “he couldn’t have done it alone”, before continuing on his way.
In closing, Fernando Pimenta left a message of civic duty: “More than saying nice things and performing pseudo-good deeds, what’s needed is to do and put them into practice. Be happy.”