🔗 Share this article Elite Athletes Appeal on Iranian Authorities to Prevent Execution of Champion Boxer Over two dozen Olympic medal winners, mentors and other global sports figures have signed a appeal calling for a halt to the capital punishment of a boxing titleholder and coach, who is facing execution in the country. Escalating International Outrage Amid increasing global condemnation over the nation's increasing application of capital punishment as a means of suppression, the powerfully expressed appeal condemns the Iranian regime's ruling to maintain the death sentence of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani. The athlete, three decades old, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was detained for being involved in national uprisings in 2019 and accused of backing an opposition group. He has passed five years in prison, where he has been abused and kept in isolation. “Competition is meant to encourage hope, unity, and bravery,” the endorsers stated. “The execution of a champion for his beliefs is a clear violation on these principles and a warning to every athlete who attempts to voice opinions. Record of Putting to Death Competitors The letter noted that Vafaei Sani’s circumstances was not unique and underscored the nation's history of executing competitors for their convictions, including a national team leader, captain of the national football team, and Fourouzan Abdi, captain of the national women’s volleyball team. In the year 2020, an athlete, a 27-year-old Iranian competitor, was also executed. Other endorsers to the statement comprise a yachting pioneer, who captained the first women's squad in a global yacht race and was the first woman to be awarded a esteemed sailing award; the former captain of the soccer side a sports advocate; and a sports figure, who was in the country's selection for the 1978 World Cup. Apprehension and Flawed Legal Process The boxer was taken into custody in early 2020. The accusations against him included “causing deterioration on Earth through incendiarism and damage of state assets”. His verdict has been annulled multiple times but on October 4 it was upheld on the third occasion. His court case was denounced as “highly unjust” by advocates and bodies. Call to United Nations The urging to prevent the athlete's death sentence follows a 2023 letter to the United Nations official for human rights, signed by in excess of a hundred rights specialists and groups, demanding intervention to stop the sports figure's death. Capital Punishment Escalation As per findings, there is an “execution crisis in the country, which has achieved shocking dimensions”. In 2023, authorities put to death at least 853 people – a forty-eight percent surge on the previous year. In the prior period, statistics showed nearly a thousand deaths, marking the peak figure since two thousand fifteen. Over eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025. Activists and dissidents are victims, notably in the wake of the the year 2022 uprising. Analysts say the regime have used the death penalty to suppress opposition, instil anxiety among the population and strengthen their control on power.