Iran banned one of its champion weightlifters from ever competing again after he shook hands with an Israeli competitor this week at a match in Poland.
The ban came after Iranian weightlifter Mostafa Rajaee was photographed shaking the hand of Maksim Svirsky of Israel during the World Master Weightlifting Championships this week in Poland, according to Iranian state media.
The head of Iran’s weightlifting federation called Rajaee's action "unacceptable and unforgivable," CNN reported.
This is not the first time the Iranian government has pressured its athletes to not interact with Israeli competitors, according to CNN:
The International Judo Federation suspended Iran in 2021 from competing for four years after it was revealed that Iranian judoka Saeid Mollaei was ordered to withdraw from the 2019 World Judo Championships to avoid facing an Israeli opponent.
Additionally, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) told the Iranian Chess Federation in 2020 to state its position on competing against Israeli athletes, after repeated cases where Iranian athletes "refused to participate in games with Israeli citizens."
Rajaee won the silver medal at the championships in Poland.
The story comes months after Iran threatened the family members of the country's World Cup soccer team if the players did not "behave."