TEHRAN, Iran (AP) Iran's president has expressed condolences over the death of Iranian para-cyclist Bahman Golbarnejad following an accident during a road race at the Rio Paralympics on Saturday.
In a comment posted Sunday on Twitter, President Hassan Rouhani wrote, ''The tragic death of Golbarnejad, our beloved cyclist during the Rio Paralympic Games, leaves all of us in sorrow. God bless his soul.''
The English-language Press TV reported that the 48-year-old cyclist sustained severe neck injuries in the crash.
The Iranian flag was lowered to half-mast in the Paralympic Village, and at the venue where Iran faces Bosnia and Herzegovina in a men's sitting volleyball final on Sunday.
A moment of silence will also be held at Sunday's closing ceremony in Maracana Stadium.
