Japan striker Naohiro Takahara didn't think twice about throwing caution to the wind and flying home to rejoin his teammates for the national team's final training camp at home before the World Cup.
Japan players Atsushi Yanagisawa (left), Shinji Ono (center) and Yuji Nakazawa
dribble the ball during the national team's training session in Naraha, Fukushima Pref.
Takahara's World Cup dream was wrecked just two months before the 2002 finals on home soil after he was struck down with deep vein thrombosis, a lung problem commonly known as economy class syndrome.
A reoccurrence of the problem ruled Takahara out of the 2004 Athens Olympics but the 26-year-old was eager to fly back to Japan to tune up with the team despite being based in Germany.