Soccer

Colombia's Linda Caicedo scores in World Cup debut vs. South Korea

Caicedo overcame ovarian cancer at age 15 and is now scoring World Cup goals at 18

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Linda Caicedo has introduced herself to the world.

The rising Real Madrid star scored for Colombia during the nation's Women's World Cup opener on Monday against South Korea.

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In the 39th minute, Caicedo made a run in transition down the left flank before cutting inside and unleashing a high shot with her right foot. It looked like it would be parried over the bar, but goalkeeper Yoon Young-geul made a mistake that saw the ball fall into the net.

Catalina Usme, the nation's top-leading scorer, opened the scoring in the 30th minute when she converted on a penalty following a handball by South Korea in its own box.

Caicedo made her debut with the senior national team in 2019 and has scored in other international fixtures, but none have been as important as this.

Caicedo is also a cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was 15 just weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Seven months later, in September of 2020, she was officially declared cancer free.

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