Thailand's Wild Boars to join Buenos Aires 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games

BANGKOK, October 2 (TNA) - A team of 12 young Thai footballers and their coach, called the Moo Pa (Wild Boars) Football Academy, who were rescued safely a couple of months ago by international volunteer teams after their 17-day trap in a deep and massively-flooded cave in the Thai North, will visit Argentina and the United States during October 3-15 when they will join the Buenos Aires 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games and thank the world community on behalf of all Thai people for the collaborative and successful international mitigation mission. Presiding over a press conference at Bangkok's Government House on October 1 to announce the scheduled overseas trip of the 13 young Thai wild boars, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said that the trip, financed by private sponsors, is part of activities co-organized by the public and private sectors to thank the world community for the recent international rescue mission. Wissanu stated that during October 4-9, the 12 young Thai football players, led by their coach, are scheduled to take part in the opening ceremony, watch football matches and join in a friendly match with local football teams at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, as invited by International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach. According to the Thai deputy premier, the 13 young Thai wild boars will then fly to visit the United States from October 10 to 12 to witness a ceremomy in which former Governor of northern Thai Chiang Rai Province Narongsak Osottanakorn, in his capacity as the head of an adhoc command center of the international rescue mission for the young Thai cave-trapped footballers, will receive the Asia Game Changer Awards from the Asia Society Association in New York and will later participate in cultural exchange activities with local youths in Los Angeles. "The upcoming overseas activities of the 13 young Thai footballers, who will be each accompanied by one of their families' member and a team of medical and psychological experts and interpreter, will represent the hearty gratitude of the whole Thai nation to the international rescuers and will also promote the national image and friendly relations with the world community", the Thai deputy premier acknowledged. The 12 young Thai wild boars, aged 11-16 years old, and their 25-year-old coach, were trapped in the deep and massively-inundated Tham Luang Cave in the compound of the Khun Nam Nang Non Forest Park in the northern Thai Chiang Rai Province on June 23 and were all brought out safely by Thai and international rescue teams in their 17-day tough but united-as-one "mission possible". (TNA)