Cadijah Mars finally came back down to Earth yesterday.
The 17-year-old Lodge School student got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel from St Lucia to Barbados with the FIFA World Cup Trophy on its one-day stay here on Tuesday.
Mars, who plays either the goalkeeper or striker position, said she was selected based on her outstanding performance during the Barbados Secondary Schools Football League competition, where she was adjudged as the best player.
Having travelled to St Lucia to accompany the trophy on its historic visit to Barbados, Mars was all smiles as she entered the I AM Jet Centre, along with category manager at Banks Holdings Limited, Alexis Garrett, who also took the trip.
An obviously shy Mars told members of the media that upon hearing she had been selected, she hurriedly called everyone she knew.
“I was so excited and I felt so good when I found out that I had been chosen that I called everyone,” she said with a smile.
“I’m very passionate about football and I was really looking forward to the trip.
“Being able to travel first-class on the FIFA Coca-Cola airplane with the World Cup Trophy was really a joy.”
Mars, who plays for local women’s side Mavericks in the Barbados Women’s Soccer League, said she planned to be a professional footballer.
She said that at the very least, she intended on being involved in a sports related field.
“I want to be a footballer, or at least involved in sports in some way. I intend to study sports management because I really love sports and I want to have a career in sports,” she admitted.
Mars said her favourite club team was Barcelona, while her number one international side was Spain.