When Monica Hickmann Alves was 16, she left Porto Alegre, her hometown in Brazil, to pursue her dream of becoming a professional soccer player.
After three years competing in São Paulo, she moved even further away home, heading to Austria to compete for SV Neulengbach.
The Orlando Pride defender has spent the past 10 years in a variety of foreign countries, learning new languages and adapting to playing different coaches while isolated from her family.
The sacrifice has paid off.
She won the right to represent her home country in the Rio Olympics that kick off this week.