Crowds cheer Pope as Leo arrives in Uruguay for start of South American tour

Pope Leo waves to the crowd on his way to the cathedral in Montevideo, Uruguay (Santiago Mazzarovich/AP)

Pope Leo XIV has opened a three-nation tour of Latin America just three weeks after lung cancer surgery, declaring he felt better than he looked and crediting God, good doctors and his healthy lifestyle with his quick recovery.

The 71-year-old arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Friday after a more than 13-hour flight from Rome during which he acknowledged “some people” had doubted whether he could make the gruelling, 12-day trip at all.