Newlywed Andrea Benedetto was drowning off a Sardinian beach on Sunday when Italian swimmer Filippo Magnini dived in to rescue him. Magnini, a former world champion, plunged in after friends of Mr Benedetto shouted to sunbathers on Cala Sinzias beach, just east of Cagliari. Magnini kept Mr Benedetto's head above water until lifeguards arrived.

"I just did what I had to," the retired sportsman said later. Mr Benedetto, 45, had married his boyfriend two days earlier at a ceremony in Cagliari. The aftermath of Sunday's incident was witnessed by a friend of the couple and BBC Persian journalist, Soroush Pakzad.