🔗 Share this article

Over twenty Olympic medallists, coaches and other international athletes have put their names to a appeal calling for a end to the death penalty of a boxing titleholder and instructor, who is on death row in Iran.

Escalating Global Anger

Amidst growing international outrage over the country's expanding employment of the death penalty as a instrument of oppression, the forcefully phrased letter censures the authorities's decision to confirm the execution order of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

The boxer, three decades old, from the city in north-east Iran, was arrested for participating in national uprisings in the year 2019 and indicted of aiding an resistance movement. He has passed five years in prison, where he has been tortured and kept in solitary confinement.

“Competition is designed to inspire hope, unity, and courage,” the signatories expressed. “The execution of a champion for his opinions is a clear violation on these ideals and a admonition to any competitor who attempts to express dissent.

History of Killing Sports Figures

The letter noted that Vafaei Sani’s circumstances was part of a pattern and emphasized Iran’s record of sentencing to death competitors for their beliefs, such as Habib Khabiri, captain of the soccer squad, and Fourouzan Abdi, skipper of the female volleyball side. In 2020, a wrestling champion, a 27-year national wrestling champion, was also executed.

Further signatories to the statement consist of a sailing champion, who led the first all-female crew in a global yacht race and was the pioneering lady to earn a renowned nautical honor; the former skipper of the national squad a sports advocate; and a sports figure, who was in the country's selection for the 1978 World Cup.

Arrest and Flawed Legal Process

The boxer was arrested in early 2020. The allegations against him comprised “promoting decay on Earth through arson and damage of government belongings”. His sentence has been annulled multiple times but on 4 October it was upheld on the third attempt. His legal proceedings was denounced as “highly unjust” by rights defenders and bodies.

Call to UN

The appeal to halt Vafaei Sani’s death sentence is subsequent to a 2023 appeal to the United Nations official for rights, endorsed by over 100 human rights experts and groups, calling for intervention to prevent the competitor's capital punishment.

Death Penalty Surge

According to data, there is an “capital punishment escalation in the country, which has achieved shocking proportions”. In the year 2023, the government put to death at least 853 people – a nearly half increase on 2022. In the prior period, records showed nearly a thousand capital punishments, constituting the highest number since 2015. More than eight hundred people have been executed so far in 2025.

Political prisoners and dissidents are focus, especially in the wake of the 2022's demonstrations. Specialists say the regime have employed the death penalty to quell dissent, generate apprehension among the population and tighten their hold on power.