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In excess of 20 Olympic medal winners, coaches and further global sports figures have put their names to a statement calling for a stop to the capital punishment of a boxing titleholder and instructor, who is on death row in the nation.

Increasing International Outrage

Amid increasing international outrage over Iran’s increasing application of capital punishment as a means of oppression, the forcefully phrased appeal censures the authorities's ruling to maintain the execution order of the athlete.

The boxer, three decades old, from the city in the northeastern region, was arrested for being involved in national uprisings in 2019 and charged of supporting an opposition group. He has passed 60 months in incarceration, where he has been mistreated and confined in seclusion.

“Competition is designed to promote faith, togetherness, and courage,” the supporters stated. “The death penalty of a titleholder for his beliefs is a blatant attack on these principles and a admonition to every athlete who attempts to speak out.

Pattern of Putting to Death Sports Figures

The letter said that the boxer's situation was part of a pattern and highlighted Iran’s record of putting to death competitors for their convictions, including a football captain, skipper of the soccer squad, and a volleyball captain, captain of the women's volleyball squad. In the year 2020, a wrestling champion, a 27-year Iranian competitor, was put to death.

Additional endorsers to the statement include Tracy Edwards, who skippered the first female-only team in a international sailing event and was the first woman to receive a renowned yachting trophy; the ex- leader of the national squad an athlete; and a footballer, who was in the Iranian squad for the international competition.

Detention and Unfair Trial

Vafaei Sani was taken into custody in early 2020. The allegations against him entailed “promoting decay on Earth through arson and ruin of government belongings”. His sentence has been annulled on two occasions but on 4 October it was upheld on the third occasion. His trial was criticized as “deeply biased” by advocates and bodies.

Call to United Nations

The urging to stop the boxer's execution comes after a 2023 statement to the UN high commissioner for freedoms, endorsed by over a hundred advocates and organizations, calling for action to prevent the sports figure's death.

Execution Crisis

Based on findings, there is an “execution crisis in Iran, which has reached horrific levels”. In the year 2023, authorities put to death at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a nearly half increase on 2022. The year before, data showed nine hundred seventy-two deaths, constituting the highest number since two thousand fifteen. In excess of hundreds of people have been put to death so far in 2025.

Activists and protesters are focus, notably in the wake of the 2022's protests. Experts say the regime have utilized the capital punishment to stifle opposition, instil anxiety among the citizenry and reinforce their grip on rule.