Cancer survivor Linda Caicedo's remarkable return: Scoring for Colombia at FIFA Women's World Cup 2023
18-year-old Linda Caicedo scored the second goal for Colombia in the 2-0 win over the Republic of Korea and added another in their historic win over Germany. Three years ago, her career was almost cut short after she was diagnosed with cancer.
Football
Aged just 15, Linda Caicedo received the devastating news that she had ovarian cancer.
Her promising football career was put on hold, despite already making her debut for América de Cali and the Colombia women's national football team at such a young age.
“The day they were going to operate on me, I thought I would not be able to return to top-level football," Linda Caicedo said according to Spain's paper Mundo Deportivo.
The teenager received massive support during her illness, especially from the Colombia head coach Nelson Abadía, who has known Caicedo since she was 12 years old.
“He told me to relax: ' you're going to come back’. And you can survive. I am an example of that,” the forward explained.
Following the fortunate news that Caicedo was cancer-free, she has proved her exceptional talent.
At the 2022 Copa América Femenina, where Colombia reached the final, she was named the best player of the tournament.
In early 2023, Real Madrid Femenino signed the 18-year-old. She has played ten games this season for 'Las Blancas', scoring twice and providing four assists.
During Colombia's FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 campaign, Caicedo scored the last goal of their opening game in the 2-0 victory over the Republic of Korea, and followed that up with a goal over former champions Germany in Colombia's historic 2-1 win, to almost guarantee a place in the knockout stages and another chapter in her incredible journey.