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Bahraini handball dynamo Saeed Jawhar aims to lead the national team to glory in the world championships in memory of his brother who was tragically killed in a knifing incident following a fracas in Hamad Town.
This week he joined the kingdom's 23-strong squad at a special training camp in Poland under the guidance of new coach Pero Milosevic as the side prepares for the sport's biggest event.
Captain Saeed, 38, who now stars for Al Ahli Club, helped the national team secure a berth in the 22nd Men's Handball World Championship which will take place in Sweden between January 13-30.
"This is the first time Bahrain has reached this stage of the championship and it is something every player dreams about achieving in his sporting career," he said.
"I am proud to be representing my country - we have some great players. I have been playing for the past 30 years dreaming of taking Bahrain to the World Cup Finals. While my mother is so proud of me right now, I know that it is tinged with sadness over what happened to my elder brother. I am definitely dedicating this to him. If we play well - it will be for Nasser!"
Nasser Jawhar, 44, died from injuries he suffered during a heated argument outside a cold store in September. A 23-year-old man was arrested shortly after the incident.
Saeed said: "This was a terrible shock. We are a tight-knit family of 10. My brother was once a footballer and played in the national league. In fact, I come from a long line of athletes and sport enthusiasts."
Amongst six brothers and four sisters Hilal, 35, and Jawhar, 32, played for Al Hala Football Club, Mohammed, 47, is a top body builder, and Qaltham, 23, is well known for her taekwondo prowess. They all followed in the sporting footsteps of their late father Jassim Mohammed, a respected horse trainer.
"I also have cousins in the handball team. So, like I said, I come from a long line of athletes - uncles, cousins and nephews included," said Saeed.
The family was united in cheering the Bahrain handball side who secured the world championship spot after a thrilling last-gasp victory over arch-rivals Saudi Arabia.
In the classic encounter all seemed lost with seven seconds to go with the game tied 25-25. The Saudis had a free-throw at the nine-metre line and a two-man advantage, so they had an excellent opportunity to win instead of having to play overtime.
With four seconds left, the Bahraini goalkeeper saved what was intended as the final shot of play.
The ball rebounded out to Saeed who instantly heaved the ball the length of the court. The Saudi goalkeeper who was some distance in front of the goal couldn't retreat in time to make a save. The ball hit the goalpost and deflected into the net with only 29.59 seconds left in the game.
Bahrain won 26-25 and went through to the world championship as runners-up in the Asian qualification competition which was won by South Korea.
Saeed said: "This team has great potential and we are getting even stronger. The team has already started exercising daily, with a programme of weight-lifting and other exercises.
"We practice four hours daily with only one day off a week. The coaching team is focusing on building our body strength and stamina over the next few months.
"We will be in Poland for two weeks as the country has great facilities for such preparations. Bahrain will also be training in Qatar, Korea and China."
Out of the 23 players in the national squad, 16 will be chosen to compete in the world championship. Saeed is one of the select few already earmarked for a place in the team along with Hussain Al Sayed, 22, Jaffar Abdul Qader, 25, Mohammed Ali Hussain, 23, Mahmood Alwanah, 24, Abbas Malallah, 26, and Mohammed Abdulnabi, 34.
Saeed added: "It's really hard to say what to expect of the team at this point as we have five months to go. We are in a very strong group which includes Spain, Germany, France, Egypt, and Tunisia. Three of them have already been World Cup champions.
"We will try our best to represent our kingdom in the best light and show the rest of the world how we can play the game.
"The only difference is that the other teams have experience of playing in the championship finals and we do not. But this is not going to hold us back as handball is made up of teamwork and with the right attitude and effort we can achieve anything.
"We must stay strong. To all our loyal and supportive fans, I can't make any promises to how things will go right now but we will give our best.
"We will need every one in the kingdom to stand together and support us - only then will we be able to achieve great things!"
