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In excess of 20 Olympic medallists, trainers and additional international athletes have put their names to a statement urging a stop to the execution of a boxing titleholder and instructor, who is sentenced to die in Iran.

Escalating Worldwide Condemnation

Amid increasing international outrage over Iran’s escalating use of executions as a means of repression, the powerfully expressed statement condemns the Iranian regime's verdict to confirm the execution order of the athlete.

Vafaei Sani, thirty, from Mashhad in the northern province, was taken into custody for participating in countrywide demonstrations in 2019 and accused of supporting an opposition group. He has passed half a decade in prison, where he has been mistreated and confined in solitary confinement.

“Competition is intended to inspire hope, solidarity, and bravery,” the supporters expressed. “The death penalty of a winner for his political views is a direct assault on these ideals and a warning to any competitor who ventures to voice opinions.

Record of Executing Sports Figures

The appeal said that Vafaei Sani’s circumstances was part of a pattern and emphasized Iran’s history of sentencing to death athletes for their convictions, for example a football captain, skipper of the national football team, and a volleyball captain, skipper of the female volleyball side. In two thousand twenty, an athlete, a young national competitor, faced the death penalty.

Additional signatories to the statement include a sailing champion, who captained the pioneering female-only team in a round-the-world competition and was the pioneering lady to earn a renowned sailing award; the previous skipper of the national squad an athlete; and Bahram Mavaddat, who was in the national team for the global tournament.

Arrest and Unfair Trial

Vafaei Sani was arrested in early 2020. The accusations against him comprised “promoting decay on Earth through arson and destruction of government belongings”. His sentence has been overturned multiple times but on 4 October it was upheld on the latest review. His court case was denounced as “deeply biased” by human rights activists and organizations.

Urging to International Body

The urging to prevent the boxer's capital punishment comes after a 2023 statement to the UN high commissioner for human rights, signed by more than 100 rights specialists and groups, demanding action to avert the athlete’s execution.

Death Penalty Surge

Based on data, there is an “death penalty surge in the nation, which has reached horrific dimensions”. In 2023, officials executed at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a 48% increase on the previous year. Last year, records showed nine hundred seventy-two capital punishments, constituting the highest number since two thousand fifteen. More than hundreds of people have been put to death so far in the current year.

Activists and protesters are focus, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022 protests. Analysts say the Iranian authorities have employed the death penalty to stifle opposition, instil anxiety among the citizenry and reinforce their control on authority.