After 17 days, the 13 people — 12 players and a coach — from a Thailand boy’s soccer team trapped in a cave have been successfully rescued. They were trapped in the cave when heavy rains flooded it, putting them behind a barrier of water. Rescue efforts took a great deal of planning and required a lot of working around, but in the end were successful.
The boys — ages 11-16 — and the 25-year-old coach are recovering at a nearby hospital.
The soccer world showed an outpouring of support while they were still trapped, and that continued upon their rescue.
FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, sent an invitation to the team for the World Cup final on Sunday as well, in which he also expressed his sympathies for the ordeal.
The boys were reportedly asking about the World Cup while they were trapped in the cave. However, their attendance is reportedly unlikely, as The Straits Times reported that doctors said they’ll need time to recover.
“They’re likely to watch it on television,” said Dr. Jesada Chokedamrongsuk, a public health secretary, during a press conference per The Times.