The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup has captured the world’s attention with spectacular play and plenty of unexpected results. And right atop the tournament’s surprises has been Colombia, the only Latin American team to qualify for the round of 16. At the center of Colombia’s run has been their eighteen-year-old forward and superstar, Linda Caicedo.
Caicedo, who has scored two of Colombia’s goals so far in the tournament and is a big reason why the South American side qualified first in Group H, has already overcome a great deal of adversity on and off the field. The forward, who signed for Real Madrid earlier this year, learned to play on the streets of her neighborhood in Villagorgona in western Colombia. And then, just after making her senior debut with the national team, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at 15 – right in the middle of the pandemic.
“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. Luckily, she made it through and told the BBC. “My family was always behind me and my coach beside me was always very close.”
After beating cancer came the U-17 World Cup, U-20 World Cup, and the FIFA World Cup, making her the tournament’s first woman to play all three within a year. Caicedo was present and scored in all three. And she was named the best player of the tournament at the 2022 Copa América Femenina.
But what she’s done in this FIFA Women’s World Cup feels somewhat magical, in the way only great players can be. The way she moves with the ball. The way she looks up and knows not just where she is on the field, but where her teammates are. One of the best examples is this beautiful goal, scored against two-time champions Germany on Sunday, August 30th.
“There’s no limit for Linda, she’s a player who’s destined for great things,” Colombia midfielder Leicy Santos told FIFA after her stunning goal. And midfielder Diana Ospina, “Few players are able to do that. Linda has stability and thank God she’s here for our team.”
As for Caicedo, she’s still finding her balance.
“I’m still growing, and that pressure is difficult sometimes, but that’s why you need to find physical and mental balance,” Caicedo told FIFA, “I try to see everything that has happened to me as a good thing and try to have fun, because playing football is my passion.”
Watch Colombia play their round of 16 match against Jamaica on August 8th at 4:00AM ET.
