🔗 Share this article Olympians Appeal on Iranian Authorities to Halt Execution of Champion Boxer More than 20 Olympic champions, mentors and additional international athletes have signed a appeal urging a end to the execution of a champion boxer and trainer, who is on death row in Iran. Increasing Global Anger During increasing global condemnation over the country's expanding employment of the death penalty as a tool of oppression, the forcefully phrased statement condemns the authorities's decision to maintain the death sentence of the boxing champion. The athlete, 30, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was detained for taking part in countrywide demonstrations in 2019 and indicted of backing an dissident organization. He has spent 60 months in detention, where he has been mistreated and kept in solitary confinement. “Athletics is designed to inspire hope, unity, and courage,” the signatories expressed. “The death penalty of a titleholder for his political views is a blatant attack on these principles and a admonition to any competitor who attempts to voice opinions. Pattern of Killing Athletes The letter noted that Vafaei Sani’s case was not unique and underscored the nation's history of putting to death athletes for their convictions, for example Habib Khabiri, leader of the football side, and Fourouzan Abdi, leader of the female volleyball side. In 2020, an athlete, a 27-year national sports titleholder, was put to death. Additional signatories to the appeal comprise a yachting pioneer, who skippered the first all-female crew in a international sailing event and was the initial female to receive a esteemed sailing award; the former skipper of the national squad a sports advocate; and a sports figure, who was in the country's selection for the international competition. Detention and Unfair Trial The boxer was taken into custody in the spring of 2020. The charges against him entailed “causing deterioration on Earth through arson and destruction of state assets”. His sentence has been overturned multiple times but on the fourth of October it was upheld on the third occasion. His trial was criticized as “deeply biased” by advocates and organizations. Urging to International Body The call to stop the athlete's death sentence follows a 2023 appeal to the global human rights chief for rights, backed by over one hundred advocates and entities, urging measures to avert the sports figure's execution. Capital Punishment Escalation Based on reports, there is an “capital punishment escalation in the nation, which has achieved shocking levels”. In 2023, the government executed at least over 850 people – a forty-eight percent increase on 2022. In the prior period, data showed nine hundred seventy-two executions, representing the highest number since 2015. In excess of eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025. Activists and dissidents are victims, especially in the aftermath of the 2022 protests. Experts say the government have used the death penalty to stifle protest, instil apprehension among the population and strengthen their grip on rule.