This is a story that has all the makings of becoming a fairytale movie as a man name Nicolo De Marchi set out on a 683 mile (1100km approximately) walk to cheer for his beloved club, Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final.
It was his way of showing affection and support for the club he loves as Juventus are getting ready to face Barcelona at the Olympic stadium on Saturday. "I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more just to be the man who walked a thousand miles to see Morata score," De Marchi had said when he set out on the amazing journey.
De Marchi who started his trip from Turin on foot expects to be in attendance for the final in Berlin, so that he can support the team he dearly loves. Juventus had made the promise that they will be giving De Marchi a ticket for the final when he completed the journey.
The lucky fan earned the ticket as he completed the astonishing walk after successfully reaching Berlin on Friday. The decision to make such a long journey was a pledge he had made saying that he will walk all the way to Berlin if Juventus reached the final. "I will go on foot," the 22-year-old had said during that time.
And it was the club who challenged the youngster to take up the dare which he had pledged after they secured a berth in the final by beating defending champions Real Madrid in the semi-final.
Juventus said that they "threw down the gauntlet" for Nicolo saying that a ticket awaited him at the end of the journey. Nicolo was allowed to use bike for some parts of the trip and also said he could use a car for 12 miles because of hazardous conditions.
After accepting the challenge he set out on the journey that took him through four different countries which included Italy, Austria, Switzerland and Germany.
The last stretch of Nicolo’s expedition was supposed to be completed by Thursday but was delayed and he reached the Olympic stadium in Berlin on Friday. Nicolo’s journey from Turin to Berlin took a total of nine days as he covered an average of 80 miles in a day.
The journey would be all the more sweet if Juventus manages to beat Barcelona in the final to complete a maiden treble.
It would be a special achievement if the Bianconeri can complete a treble this season and passionate fans like Nicolo will be out in full support for the Turin side. Juventus would be hoping that they can win the Champions League at least for Nicolas’ sake.