'I haven't seen my family for nine months, all I have is my bike': Elite cyclist seeking asylum says he would be 'broken' if moved to Bibby Stockholm barge

Mohammad Ganjkhanlou competed in last summer’s Glasgow World Championships before he applied for asylum in the UK

Mohammad Ganjkhanlou
Mohammad Ganjkhanlou (right) says he is concerned for his mental health if he moves to the barge
(Image credit: Supplied by Reading Cycling Club)

An elite Iranian cyclist, who claimed asylum in the UK after last year’s Glasgow World Championships, says the Bibby Stockholm barge would destroy his mental health and wellbeing if he is forced to Portland, Dorset by the Home Office. 

Mohammad Ganjkhanlou told Cycling Weekly that his mind would be "broken" if he was forced to move to the barge housing asylum seekers, which Amnesty International called an "utterly shameful way to house people who’ve fled terror, conflict and persecution".

Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Tom Thewlis
News and Features Writer

After previously working in higher education, Tom joined Cycling Weekly in 2022 and hasn't looked back. He's been covering professional cycling ever since; reporting on the ground from some of the sport's biggest races and events, including the Tour de France, Paris-Roubaix and the World Championships. His earliest memory of a bike race is watching the Tour on holiday in the early 2000's in the south of France - he even made it on to the podium in Pau afterwards. His favourite place that cycling has taken him is Montréal in Canada.