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In excess of two dozen Olympic champions, mentors and additional international athletes have endorsed a appeal demanding a end to the death penalty of a champion boxer and instructor, who is on death row in the nation.

Growing Worldwide Condemnation

Amid increasing global condemnation over Iran’s increasing application of executions as a means of repression, the strongly worded statement denounces the Iranian regime's decision to uphold the death sentence of the boxing champion.

The boxer, 30, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was arrested for being involved in nationwide protests in 2019 and charged of supporting an opposition group. He has passed 60 months in detention, where he has been tortured and kept in isolation.

“Sport is intended to encourage faith, togetherness, and fortitude,” the supporters stated. “The death penalty of a champion for his political views is a direct assault on these principles and a caution to every athlete who attempts to speak out.

Record of Putting to Death Athletes

The appeal said that Vafaei Sani’s circumstances was not an isolated one and emphasized the country's past of executing athletes for their views, such as a football captain, captain of the national football team, and a women's sports leader, leader of the female volleyball side. In the year 2020, a wrestling champion, a 27-year-old Iranian wrestling champion, faced the death penalty.

Further signatories to the statement consist of a sailing champion, who led the first female-only team in a round-the-world competition and was the first woman to earn a prestigious yachting trophy; the previous captain of the national squad Craig Foster; and Bahram Mavaddat, who was in the country's selection for the international competition.

Apprehension and Flawed Legal Process

Vafaei Sani was arrested in the spring of 2020. The charges against him entailed “promoting decay on Earth through incendiarism and destruction of state assets”. His ruling has been overturned on two occasions but on 4 October it was confirmed on the latest review. His court case was criticized as “highly unjust” by advocates and organizations.

Call to United Nations

The urging to stop Vafaei Sani’s execution follows a 2023 letter to the global human rights chief for freedoms, signed by over one hundred human rights experts and organizations, demanding action to avert the athlete’s execution.

Capital Punishment Escalation

Based on data, there is an “death penalty surge in the country, which has achieved horrific proportions”. In two thousand twenty-three, the government sentenced at least over 850 people – a nearly half increase on 2022. The year before, data showed 972 capital punishments, marking the maximum count since the year 2015. More than eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Dissidents and dissidents are targets, particularly in the wake of the the year 2022 protests. Specialists say the Iranian authorities have used the executions to stifle protest, instil anxiety among the population and strengthen their hold on authority.