An Iranian world-class weightlifter has been banned for life by the Iran Weightlifting Federation after shaking the hand of his Israeli competitor and taking a photo with him..
Mostafa Rajaei finished second in the men’s over-35 age group in the 240 lb division behind Sargis Martirosjan from Austria and ahead of third-place finisher Maksim Svirsky of Israel at the World Masters Weightlifting Championships in Poland. Rajaei broke the world record for the clean and jerk, lifting 430 lbs. breaking the previous record of 428 lbs set by Hungary’s Ferenc Gyurkovics set in 2014 at 428 lbs.
But standing on the podium with Martirosjan and Svirsky, Rajaei shook Svirsky’s hand and took a picture with him. That prompted the Iran Weightlifting Federation, which called Rajaei’s actions an “unforgivable” indiscretion, to ban Rajaei for life and fire Hamid Salehiniam, who supervised the Iranian team at the event.
Iranian weightlifter Mostafa Rajaei banned from sport for life after shaking hands with Israeli competitor https://t.co/cTliQZ4JzH pic.twitter.com/lY9RZO2xXx
— New York Post (@nypost) August 31, 2023
“The weightlifting federation bans athlete Mostafa Rajaei for life from entering all sports facilities in the country and dismisses the head of the delegation for the competition,” the Iran Weightlifting Federation stated.
Rajaei “crossed the red lines of the Islamic Republic,” the state news agency IRNA reported.
Rajaei wrote on Instagram, “I could not work well because of the pain in my elbow. But in the two beats of God and gratitude, I became the first, and moved the world record by one kilogram. … I came in second overall. Thanks to all dears who helped me in this way.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told athletes “not to shake hands with a representative of the [Israeli] criminal regime to obtain a medal” two years ago.
In April 2021, the International Judo Federation (IJF) hit Iran with a four-year ban for “repeated and very severe breaches” of the organization’s statutes after an Iranian fighter was told not to compete against an Israeli. In October 2020, the IJF sanctioned Iran for demanding Saeid Mollaei to withdraw from the world championships so he would not have to confront Israeli contender Sagi Muki. Mollaei, who won the 2018 world judo crown, then fled Iran to live in Germany.
The IJF asserted it “continues to defend fundamental human values and rights of all its members, with a special emphasis on the rights of athletes and reiterates its commitment to fight against any form of discrimination in the sport of Judo.”
