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More than two dozen Olympic medallists, coaches and further international athletes have put their names to a statement demanding a halt to the death penalty of a boxing titleholder and instructor, who is facing execution in Iran.

Escalating International Outrage

During growing global condemnation over Iran’s escalating use of the death penalty as a means of repression, the powerfully expressed letter censures the Iranian regime's verdict to maintain the execution order of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

The boxer, three decades old, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was taken into custody for being involved in countrywide demonstrations in the year 2019 and charged of supporting an resistance movement. He has endured half a decade in incarceration, where he has been tortured and held in seclusion.

“Athletics is intended to promote optimism, togetherness, and fortitude,” the signatories expressed. “The capital punishment of a champion for his political views is a clear violation on these ideals and a caution to all sportspeople who dares to speak out.

Record of Putting to Death Athletes

The statement pointed out that Vafaei Sani’s situation was part of a pattern and emphasized the nation's record of executing athletes for their convictions, for example a football captain, skipper of the football side, and a women's sports leader, skipper of the female volleyball side. In 2020, Navid Afkari, a 27-year national sports titleholder, was also executed.

Further endorsers to the letter consist of Tracy Edwards, who skippered the first female-only team in a international sailing event and was the initial female to earn a esteemed nautical honor; the former leader of the national squad a sports advocate; and a sports figure, who was in the Iranian squad for the international competition.

Apprehension and Flawed Legal Process

The athlete was detained in the spring of 2020. The charges against him comprised “spreading corruption on Earth through incendiarism and ruin of government belongings”. His verdict has been overturned multiple times but on the fourth of October it was maintained on the third attempt. His court case was condemned as “deeply biased” by human rights activists and groups.

Appeal to United Nations

The appeal to halt the athlete's death sentence comes after a previous statement to the UN high commissioner for human rights, endorsed by in excess of a hundred advocates and organizations, demanding measures to prevent the competitor's execution.

Capital Punishment Escalation

According to reports, there is an “death penalty surge in Iran, which has attained shocking proportions”. In the year 2023, authorities put to death at least 853 people – a 48% increase on 2022. The year before, statistics showed nine hundred seventy-two deaths, constituting the highest number since 2015. In excess of hundreds of people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Activists and opponents are focus, particularly in the wake of the 2022 demonstrations. Analysts say the government have used the death penalty to suppress opposition, instil apprehension among the public and tighten their hold on rule.