Dramatic Thai cave rescue! Pictures that tell the ordeal and superhuman endeavour

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Thailand on Wednesday celebrated the successful mission to free 12 boys of the "Wild Boars" soccer team and their coach from a cave they were trapped in. The entire nation heaped praise on the rescue team as the triumphant tagline "Hooyah" pinballed across social media.

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The nerve-shredding three-day mission ended on Tuesday with the final group of four boys and the coach emerging from the cave which had held them captive for 18 days. (Reuters)

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The rescue received blanket coverage in Thai media with newspapers The Nation running a "Hooyah! Mission accomplished" and the Bangkok Post emblazoned with "All Wild Boars saved". Their ordeal gripped the world, with the lives of the boys aged 11 to 16 and their 25-year-old coach hanging in the balance as the threat of heavy rain injected urgency to an already perilous extraction bid. (AP)

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Chiang Rai province acting Governor Narongsak Osatanakorn, who led the rescue operation, talked to media during a press conference in Mae Sai on Tuesday. (AP)

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Rescuers had weighed up several options to save the boys, including keeping them in the cave through the months-long monsoon season. (AP/PTI)

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However, they were prodded into the dangerous task of 'diving out' the team through submerged chambers and claustrophobic passages as oxygen levels in the cave plummeted and rains menaced. (AP)

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The team was led out in three batches by a team of 13 international divers flanked by the Thai Navy SEALs, who greeted each successful rescue with a "Hooyah" on their Facebook page. (AP)

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Presently, the boys and the coach are in quarantine in Chiang Rai hospital in Thailand, apparently in good spirits despite their ordeal. (Reuters)

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On Wednesday, a few hundred school children gathered opposite the hospital, looking up at the building that will be home to the rescued football team for the coming days. (Reuters)

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In this image taken from video provided by the Royal Thai Navy Facebook Page, the boys smile as Thai Navy SEAL medic help injured children inside the cave. (AP)

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The dangers of the rescue were brought into sharp relief last Friday by the death of a retired Thai Navy SEAL as he ran out off air in the flooded cave complex as the extraction plans were being laid. (Reuters)

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The group was trapped in rising floodwaters and were found nine days later emaciated and dishevelled on a muddy ledge, with water lapping ominously below. (Reuters)

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The saga captivated a global audience for over two weeks, rewarding them with a remarkable happy ending. (Reuters)