An Iranian weightlifter has been suspended by authorities in his home country after he shook hands with an Israeli competitor at the World Seniors Championships in Poland. “The Weightlifting Association has banned the athlete Mostafa Rajai from all sports facilities in the country for life and dismissed the head of the delegation for the competition, Hamid Salehinia,” the news agency “Irna” quoted a corresponding decision.
Rajai shook hands with Israeli weightlifter Maksim Svirsky on Saturday as both stood on the podium at a Worldmasters series event in Wieliczka, Poland.
The Islamic Republic of Iran, a sworn enemy of Israel, does not recognize the Jewish state and bans all contact between Iranian and Israeli athletes. According to the agency Irna, Rajai “crossed a red line”. Rajai represented his country at the 2015 Asian Championships in Thailand.