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More than twenty Olympic medal winners, trainers and additional international athletes have signed a letter demanding a stop to the death penalty of a boxing champion and instructor, who is on death row in the nation.

Increasing International Outrage

Amid rising global condemnation over the country's increasing application of the death penalty as a tool of repression, the powerfully expressed statement censures the government's verdict to maintain the execution order of the boxing champion.

The athlete, 30, from Mashhad in north-east Iran, was arrested for taking part in nationwide protests in two thousand nineteen and charged of backing an opposition group. He has passed half a decade in prison, where he has been mistreated and held in solitary confinement.

“Competition is meant to encourage hope, solidarity, and courage,” the signatories stated. “The death penalty of a titleholder for his opinions is a direct assault on these principles and a warning to any competitor who ventures to voice opinions.

Record of Killing Athletes

The appeal said that the athlete's circumstances was part of a pattern and highlighted Iran’s history of putting to death competitors for their beliefs, such as a football captain, leader of the football side, and a women's sports leader, captain of the female volleyball side. In two thousand twenty, a wrestling champion, a young national competitor, faced the death penalty.

Additional signatories to the appeal comprise a yachting pioneer, who skippered the pioneering all-female crew in a international sailing event and was the pioneering lady to receive a prestigious sailing award; the previous captain of the national squad a sports advocate; and a sports figure, who was in the Iranian squad for the global tournament.

Apprehension and Unjust Proceedings

The boxer was arrested in early 2020. The accusations against him included “promoting decay on Earth through arson and destruction of state assets”. His sentence has been reversed on two occasions but on the fourth of October it was upheld on the third attempt. His legal proceedings was criticized as “grossly unfair” by human rights activists and bodies.

Urging to UN

The urging to stop Vafaei Sani’s execution follows a 2023 statement to the UN high commissioner for freedoms, signed by in excess of one hundred advocates and groups, calling for measures to stop the athlete’s capital punishment.

Execution Crisis

Based on findings, there is an “capital punishment escalation in the country, which has attained alarming proportions”. In the year 2023, the government sentenced at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a 48% increase on 2022. Last year, statistics showed nine hundred seventy-two capital punishments, constituting the highest number since the year 2015. In excess of hundreds of people have been executed so far in 2025.

Dissidents and opponents are targets, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022 uprising. Specialists say the Iranian authorities have used the executions to stifle opposition, instil fear among the public and reinforce their grip on power.