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In excess of twenty Olympic champions, mentors and further world-class competitors have put their names to a letter calling for a stop to the execution of a champion boxer and trainer, who is on death row in Iran.

Escalating International Outrage

Amid growing worldwide anger over the country's increasing application of executions as a means of repression, the powerfully expressed letter condemns the government's verdict to maintain the capital punishment of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

Vafaei Sani, 30, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was detained for taking part in nationwide protests in 2019 and charged of aiding an dissident organization. He has endured half a decade in detention, where he has been abused and confined in seclusion.

“Athletics is designed to inspire faith, unity, and courage,” the signatories stated. “The death penalty of a titleholder for his political views is a direct assault on these principles and a warning to any competitor who ventures to voice opinions.

Record of Executing Athletes

The appeal noted that the boxer's circumstances was not unique and underscored the country's past of executing sports champions for their convictions, such as a national team leader, leader of the football side, and a women's sports leader, skipper of the female volleyball side. In the year 2020, Navid Afkari, a young Iranian wrestling champion, faced the death penalty.

Other supporters to the appeal comprise a yachting pioneer, who led the pioneering women's squad in a round-the-world competition and was the first woman to be awarded a renowned yachting trophy; the former leader of the Australian football team an athlete; and a footballer, who was in the Iranian squad for the 1978 World Cup.

Arrest and Unfair Trial

The boxer was detained in the spring of 2020. The accusations against him included “promoting decay on Earth through fire-setting and destruction of government belongings”. His verdict has been overturned on two occasions but on the fourth of October it was confirmed on the third occasion. His legal proceedings was denounced as “grossly unfair” by advocates and organizations.

Call to International Body

The urging to prevent the athlete's death sentence follows a 2023 appeal to the UN high commissioner for rights, backed by more than a hundred human rights experts and groups, calling for intervention to prevent the competitor's death.

Capital Punishment Escalation

Based on findings, there is an “death penalty surge in Iran, which has attained shocking proportions”. In two thousand twenty-three, the government sentenced at least over 850 people – a 48% increase on the previous year. Last year, data showed nearly a thousand capital punishments, representing the maximum count since two thousand fifteen. In excess of hundreds of people have been put to death so far in the current year.

Political prisoners and protesters are targets, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022 demonstrations. Experts say the regime have used the capital punishment to stifle dissent, generate anxiety among the population and reinforce their grip on authority.