The Thai football team has launched a team building exercise that has turned into a nightmare

The hike was never to be considered dangerous.

Initially, the assistant coach could learn to handle himself the young football players, and a sort of team-building exercise for the Wild Boars, the seemingly innocent tour quickly took a which captivated the world for two weeks

. What began as a "rite of passage" for the 12 Thai schoolchildren, aged 11 to 16, was described as a worse situation than a horror movie you could imagine. "

The adventure – the one that several boys have already practiced several time – was considered crucial for the formation of the team, since they spend together up to 20 hours a week.

The difference this time was the period of the

Many had never dared to venture into the infamous cave system of Tham Luang – the longest in Thailand with a series of tunnels, slippery rocks and cliffs with Drop-offs in the dark – during the rainy season The large warning sign at the beginning should have been an indicator – it indicates how the caves can quickly be flooded during the monsoon season.

While some locals and young boys say that they are warned to stay away from the infamous ones. at this time of the year, others say that they have already left several times and are always well prepared for their trip.

The young coach, Ekkapol "Aek" Chanthawong, said the boys were following a strict training schedule. and often He has cycled through the hills surrounding Mae Sai from his football field nestled by the mountain range.

Nopparat Kathawong, head coach of the Wild Boars, 37, told the Washington Post that he did not know where Ekkapol was taking the team but he trusted them.

All he asked was that he take boys from the older team for extra eyes and that Ekkapol made the bicycle behind them to "watch"

. on their mission – a 45-minute bike ride from their school to the cave – without him because Nopparat had an appointment.

It was not until around 7 pm that he returned his phone that night that he realized that something was terribly wrong

Somewhere between the boys who were leaving their bicycles at the entrance of the cave, the sky opened with heavy rain that filled the water tunnels and cut off the exit route.

They had no choice but to continue to forge ahead, along steep slopes, where they found a dry ledge 4km from the cave that would make their rescue even easier. more dangerous, leaving them stranded in total darkness for days.

All Nopparat found him at the entrance of the cave that night were the boys' bikes and bags next to which triggered his worst fears – the water flowing from the opening.

"I screamed -" Ek! Ek! Ek! "My body became completely cold," he told the Washington Post

. July 2, more than a week after their disappearance, two divers found the group alive, far from the entrance to the cave and huddled

The painstaking rescue has so far seen eight boys in security go out with four others and the coach still trapped.

The chief of the rescue operation would not confirm if all five could go out today, raising questions about the fact that Ekkapol could be left to spend a lonely night in the cave.

Boys who do not go and know him believe that he will survive, despite reports that he is the weakest of the group having sacrificed his food for them

Two boys who have a nickname, Tail and Kaan, have not finished the hike, but they told the ABC q • They would not hesitate to follow their coach into the system because they trusted them for their lives.

said that he would often give boys a pep ta lk before entering, spending up to six hours inside with food, water and a lot of flashlights.

But Ekkapol having been a monk and teaching boys how to meditate, even when their torches were extinguished and that they were not. they were surrounded by bats, they

The purpose of the mission was to scribble their names at the end of the 2.5 km tunnel as proof that they had completed the trip.

The waiting line had never been during the rainy season, but he said that he had They've already been four times this year with their coach, traveling a few kilometers each time.

The boys named Puwadet and Kittichoke play on the same football team and could have been with them if they had not skipped the training.

Boys are never made to follow extra workout after training and can get their parents to pick them up if they decide not to do it.

Others salute the team trapped as being heroes, with 16-year-old Nanthawat Prangsangwilia. nickname is Gan, saying that they will be stronger when they go out

"W When they come home, these kids will teach us something – about how to survive, how to stay safe in the caves, "he told The Independent

A friend, Nuttawut Takumsong, was in the cave and said he was afraid something would happen to them when they defied the warnings

"I was very worried about what would happen to them.Caves are a dark and scary place.I would never dare to go there."

Anmar Mirza, coordinator of the National Cave Rescue Mission, involved for 30 years in cave rescue, told CBS: "You can not make a horror film that could even be compared "

" Associate Professor Sarb Johal of the Joint Center for Disaster Research in New Zealand said their rescue would at least have helped others to lag behind.

He said that all the feelings that their situation might have lost could have turned around.

"From the point of view of these boys and their coach, the relief of being found may coexist with the fact that they remain stuck and that their future remains uncertain," he said. [19659003] "In addition to that, the feelings of t that the coach can experience, even if it is clear that he sacrificed his self-care to try to give priority to well-being boys for whom he is responsible. "

But he said that their physical situation also had the potential to cause

"Lack of light during this period means that they can not only be psychologically disoriented, but that many of their basic physiological functions depend on circadian rhythms will be disrupted, such as sleep, hormonal functioning, central temperature, feeding and consumption of alcohol, and the functioning of their gastrointestinal system, "he said

. support for their own well-being while This situation continued to manifest itself.

The water levels inside the cave fluctuate, making it difficult to know for sure how long some dives will take. what turned out to be the worst tour imaginable will eventually end.