Iranian Athlete Refuses to Shake Kate Middleton's Hand at Paralympics [PHOTOS and VIDEO]

One might think that all men would want to touch The Duchess of Cambridge's hand, but not an Iranian Paralympic.

During an awarding ceremony of the Paralympics held on Sunday, a Paralympian, Mehrdad Karam Zadeh, refused to accept the friendly gesture of the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, upon handing him the silver medal he won for Discus Throwing.

Not to be tagged as an insensitive act, the Iranian was simply following his Iranian custom of being prohibited in making contact with another woman without any relations to him. This custom has been discussed in an Iranian cultural convention, banning the contact of unrelated men and women.

When Middleton presented the medal to Zadeh, the Paralympian took his hands close to his chest and bowed down as a sign of respect. A palace representative released a statement regarding this act, saying that the Duchess has been briefed about Iranian customs before the ceremony.

"Many male athletes from Islamic countries do not shake hands in public with women they are not related to for cultural and religious reasons" said the palace representative as reported by the Telegraph.

Zadeh shared the stage with Great Britain's Aled Davies, who was more than eager to shake The Duchess hand after winning the coveted gold medal. The bronze medal for the said event went to China's Lezheng Wang.

Meanwhile, The Duchess looked elegant in a fitted blue suit adorned with a scarf that accentuated her luscious locks and refined features.

View the video by worldviralmedia below to see Kate Middleton hand Zareh his Paralympic silver medal.

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