Police: Woman, 80, Dies After Being Hit by Bicycle

An 80-year-old woman died this week after being struck by a bicyclist, falling and sustaining head trauma, according to information police released Tuesday.

Ita Lapina of Arlington was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m. Monday at Inova Fairfax Hospital.

Lapina was on the Four Mile Run bike path near the 4900 block of Columbia Pike early Monday.

A 62-year-old man on a bicycle was heading downhill when he saw her ahead of him, that man and a witness told police. The man, on a Next Power Climber bike, yelled "to your left" and rang a bell — causing Lapina to turn around. As she did, she was struck head-on and fell backward, striking her head on the pavement, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.

The first 911 call came in to Arlington County at 7:11 a.m. Monday. The bicyclist remained on the scene and suffered a minor knee injury.

The bicyclist, whom Sternbeck would not name, has not been charged.

"It was just a tragic accident," Sternbeck said. "There was no one at fault."