In 2000, Brazilian footballer Ronaldo Nazario, known as Ronaldo, suffered a career-threatening knee injury whilst playing for Inter Milan at the age of 24.

His physiotherapist, Nilton Petroni, said it was the ‘worst football injury’ he had ever seen.

Over the next two years, Nilton worked with Ronaldo to rebuild his knee so that it could withstand the pressure of playing football again after surgery.

By 2002, Ronaldo was fit again and selected for Brazil’s World Cup squad. He scored 8 goals in 7 games as Brazil became world champions for a record 5th time.

Nilton has been speaking to Tim O’Callaghan about Ronaldo’s amazing recovery.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive and testimony. Sporting Witness is for those fascinated by sporting history. We take you to the events that have shaped the sports world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes, you become a fan in the stands as we take you back in time to examine memorable victories and agonising defeats from all over the world. You’ll hear from people who have achieved sporting immortality, or those who were there as incredible sporting moments unfolded.

Recent episodes explore the forgotten football Women’s World Cup, the plasterer who fought a boxing legend, international football’s biggest ever beating and the man who swam the Amazon river. We look at the lives of some of the most famous F1 drivers, tennis players and athletes as well as people who’ve had ground-breaking impact in their chosen sporting field, including: the most decorated Paralympian, the woman who was the number 1 squash player in the world for nine years, and the first figure skater to wear a hijab. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the tennis player who escaped the Nazis, how a man finally beat a horse in a race, and how the FIFA computer game was created.

(Photo: Ronaldo and Nilton during a treatment session for his knee. Credit: ANTONIO SCORZA/AFP via Getty Images)

Host nation Brazil were World Cup favourites in 2014, but the German team dismantled Brazil's defense and spirit by scoring five goals in 29 minutes.

Germany's Thomas Müller tells Uma Doraiswamy how they inflicted Brazil's heaviest defeat.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive and testimony. Sporting Witness is for those fascinated by sporting history. We take you to the events that have shaped the sports world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes, you become a fan in the stands as we take you back in time to examine memorable victories and agonising defeats from all over the world. You’ll hear from people who have achieved sporting immortality, or those who were there as incredible sporting moments unfolded.

Recent episodes explore the forgotten football Women’s World Cup, the plasterer who fought a boxing legend, international football’s biggest ever beating and the man who swam the Amazon river. We look at the lives of some of the most famous F1 drivers, tennis players and athletes as well as people who’ve had ground-breaking impact in their chosen sporting field, including: the most decorated Paralympian, the woman who was the number 1 squash player in the world for nine years, and the first figure skater to wear a hijab. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the tennis player who escaped the Nazis, how a man finally beat a horse in a race, and how the FIFA computer game was created.

(Photo: Thomas Müller celebrates scoring his Germany's first goal. Credit: Jamie McDonald/Getty Images)

Pickles the dog became an unlikely hero before the 1966 World Cup when he found the stolen Jules Rimet trophy on his daily walk. Stardom beckoned as he was honoured with a medal and a role in a film, even becoming part of England's celebrations when they won the tournament. Uma Doraiswamy tells the story using archive recordings.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive and testimony. Sporting Witness is for those fascinated by sporting history. We take you to the events that have shaped the sports world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes, you become a fan in the stands as we take you back in time to examine memorable victories and agonising defeats from all over the world. You’ll hear from people who have achieved sporting immortality, or those who were there as incredible sporting moments unfolded.

Recent episodes explore the forgotten football Women’s World Cup, the plasterer who fought a boxing legend, international football’s biggest ever beating and the man who swam the Amazon river. We look at the lives of some of the most famous F1 drivers, tennis players and athletes as well as people who’ve had ground-breaking impact in their chosen sporting field, including: the most decorated Paralympian, the woman who was the number 1 squash player in the world for nine years, and the first figure skater to wear a hijab. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the tennis player who escaped the Nazis, how a man finally beat a horse in a race, and how the FIFA computer game was created.

(Photo: Pickles with his owner David Corbett watching the World Cup Final. Credit: Bill Rowntree/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)

In 1994, the USA hosted the FIFA World Cup for the first time. The choice of host nation was a controversial one because, at that time, the US didn't have an active professional football league. Alan Rothenberg was the man in charge of organising the competition. He decided to book Motown legend, Diana Ross, to headline the opening ceremony in Chicago. Her penalty miss in front of 67,000 fans became an iconic moment in World Cup history. Alan has been sharing his memories of the tournament with Matt Pintus.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive and testimony. Sporting Witness is for those fascinated by sporting history. We take you to the events that have shaped the sports world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes, you become a fan in the stands as we take you back in time to examine memorable victories and agonising defeats from all over the world. You’ll hear from people who have achieved sporting immortality, or those who were there as incredible sporting moments unfolded.

Recent episodes explore the forgotten football Women’s World Cup, the plasterer who fought a boxing legend, international football’s biggest ever beating and the man who swam the Amazon river. We look at the lives of some of the most famous F1 drivers, tennis players and athletes as well as people who’ve had ground-breaking impact in their chosen sporting field, including: the most decorated Paralympian, the woman who was the number 1 squash player in the world for nine years, and the first figure skater to wear a hijab. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the tennis player who escaped the Nazis, how a man finally beat a horse in a race, and how the FIFA computer game was created.

(Photo: Diana Ross at the 1994 World Cup opening ceremony. Credit: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP via Getty Images)