"It's a surprise, even though they were saying it wouldn't be a European, " said Marta Delgado, a 61-year-old churchgoer.

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Marta from Brazil won't play this season, but could be picked up by a team next year if she's available.

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They are offered every possible medical intervention, including quadruple-bypass surgery and dialysis (for Olimpia, a grandmother with a slim chance of survival) and bariatric surgery (for Marta, a younger family member who can't lose a pound on her own).

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