Their rescue was particularly treacherous because the boys, aged 11 to 16, had to swim through tight spaces despite having no previous diving experience.
The hashtag "Hooyah" went viral online, used by the Thai Navy SEALS online as a celebratory phrase when posting updates about the mission. The children were well taken care of in the cave.
Even though pumps had brought down water levels significantly in recent days, the still-flooded chambers presented a daunting task for the teams.
The Thai Navy SEALs posted a video on Facebook showing the group when they were first found.
Each of the boys lost weight while stranded in the cave and will be kept in Chiang Rai Prachanukroh Hospital for a week before going home, a public health official said.
Although the boys spent nine days without food and more than two weeks in the dark, damp cave, they seem to be in good health.
His parents dropped him off at a Baptist church in the border town of Mae Sai. and the principal of Wiang Phan School, which Sam-on attends, told the Times that he is "the best of the best" and that stateless children often have a "fighting spirit that makes them want to excel".
The first boys rescued on Sunday have been allowed to see their relatives through a glass partition and speak to them on a telephone line.
"This victory goes to the heroes of the day, well done boys, you are so strong", French midfielder Paul Pogba tweeted after his team beat Belgium 1-0 on Tuesday to reach the final.
Rescue chief Narongsak Osottanakorn told reporters today that the entire operation would not have been possible without the unique skills that Harris brought to the mission, though he did not elaborate.
The saga is reminiscent of the 2010 rescue of 33 Chilean miners who were trapped for 69 days, a tale that was turned into the 2015 movie "The 33" starring Antonio Banderas.
"We just did what we could", he said yesterday.
At a school opposite the hospital in Chiang Rai where the boys are recovering, schoolchildren were in an excited, celebratory mood.
One of the team members, Sam-on, is a top student and athlete whose proficiency in languages allowed him to act as translator for the British divers who helped rescue the team, CBS News reported. They were carried by stretcher in the compartments that hadn't flooded.
"I refuse to let Hollywood #whitewashout the Thai Cave rescue story!"
AT least two Hollywood production companies are looking into putting the dramatic rescue of the "Wild Boars" soccer team on the big screen but social media is abuzz with the potential whitewashing of the proposed film.
"We were pleased and very relieved that they were alive", Volanthen said.
Having completed this section, the boys were then handed over to separate, specialist rescue teams, who helped them through the remainder of the cave, much of which they could wade through.
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