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Over twenty Olympic medal winners, coaches and other world-class competitors have endorsed a appeal demanding a halt to the capital punishment of a champion boxer and trainer, who is on death row in Iran.

Increasing Worldwide Condemnation

Amidst increasing worldwide anger over Iran’s expanding employment of the death penalty as a instrument of oppression, the forcefully phrased statement censures the government's decision to uphold the capital punishment of the boxing champion.

The athlete, three decades old, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was detained for being involved in nationwide protests in two thousand nineteen and charged of supporting an opposition group. He has spent five years in detention, where he has been mistreated and held in isolation.

“Competition is designed to promote faith, togetherness, and bravery,” the supporters wrote. “The execution of a titleholder for his opinions is a blatant attack on these principles and a admonition to any competitor who ventures to express dissent.

History of Putting to Death Athletes

The statement said that Vafaei Sani’s case was part of a pattern and underscored Iran’s past of sentencing to death competitors for their beliefs, for example a football captain, skipper of the soccer squad, and Fourouzan Abdi, leader of the female volleyball side. In 2020, a wrestling champion, a young Iranian sports titleholder, was put to death.

Additional supporters to the letter comprise Tracy Edwards, who led the pioneering women's squad in a international sailing event and was the pioneering lady to receive a esteemed sailing award; the former leader of the soccer side a sports advocate; and a footballer, who was in the national team for the global tournament.

Apprehension and Unjust Proceedings

Vafaei Sani was detained in March 2020. The allegations against him entailed “promoting decay on Earth through incendiarism and destruction of government belongings”. His sentence has been annulled on two occasions but on the fourth of October it was maintained on the latest review. His court case was criticized as “grossly unfair” by advocates and bodies.

Urging to UN

The appeal to stop the boxer's capital punishment follows a previous appeal to the global human rights chief for freedoms, backed by over one hundred rights specialists and organizations, demanding action to prevent the athlete’s execution.

Capital Punishment Escalation

Based on findings, there is an “execution crisis in Iran, which has reached horrific dimensions”. In the year 2023, authorities put to death at least over 850 people – a nearly half rise on the previous year. In the prior period, statistics showed nine hundred seventy-two capital punishments, representing the maximum count since the year 2015. More than hundreds of people have been put to death so far in 2025.

Dissidents and opponents are targets, especially in the aftermath of the the year 2022 uprising. Experts say the Iranian authorities have employed the executions to quell dissent, instil anxiety among the citizenry and strengthen their control on power.