Joshua Nair
A Rolex watch that was found by a surfer at the bottom of the ocean has been restored and returned to its rightful owner... and you won't believe the transformation it's had!
Of course, the ocean is the vast home to all sorts of things. And we aren't just talking about marine life here.
We're talking sunken cities, shipwrecks, World War II memorabilia... oh, and apparently very expensive watches!
Last summer, Australian surfer Matt Cuddihy went viral when he shared his remarkable discovery on Instagram to his 25K followers.
Found in the waters off the coast of Noosa in Queensland was a Submariner Rolex watch - which usually retail for between £8-10K - and while it was clearly showing severe wear and tear from being underwater for so long, Matt decided to set out to find its original owner.
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Despite being covered in rust and corrosion, and the braided strap certainly having seen better days, though Matt's video of the Submariner watch showed how it was still ticking - meaning hope was not lost.
Once the watch was safely back on land with Matt, the surfer discovered an inscription on the back, pointing to the person whose wrist it used to proudly sit upon.
After going viral and gathering attention both online and in the media, Ric Outrim was contacted and identified as the Rolex's owner.
And even more amazingly so, Rolex got wind of the story and decided they wanted to step in and help Ric - who once served in the Royal Australian Navy - get his watch restored to its once natural beauty.
With the help of Fratello Watches, the watch was restored - much to the delight of Ric, who revealed that he'd been wearing it for nearly 50 years after he received it at the age of 18.
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“I would like to say ‘thank you’ to that watchmaker because it’s clear how much love and effort went into this project,” Ric said.
"We had lunch together with the Rolex team in Brisbane. It was missing for such a while that I had sort of reconciled with this sense of deep loss.
"I never thought it would come back to me, but Rolex was amazing."
Ric said that the whole experience was 'unbelievable', and that he was 'so emotional' after he became resigned to losing it.
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"I’d like to have Matt as a friend for the rest of my life," he added.
"He’s a person of very high caliber."