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Over 20 Olympic champions, mentors and further international athletes have endorsed a appeal calling for a halt to the death penalty of a boxing champion and trainer, who is sentenced to die in the nation.

Escalating Worldwide Condemnation

Amidst rising worldwide anger over the nation's expanding employment of executions as a instrument of oppression, the powerfully expressed appeal censures the government's ruling to maintain the execution order of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

The boxer, three decades old, from the city in north-east Iran, was arrested for being involved in nationwide protests in 2019 and charged of supporting an dissident organization. He has endured 60 months in incarceration, where he has been mistreated and confined in solitary confinement.

“Sport is designed to promote hope, togetherness, and courage,” the endorsers wrote. “The execution of a champion for his political views is a direct assault on these principles and a warning to every athlete who dares to speak out.

Record of Putting to Death Competitors

The statement pointed out that Vafaei Sani’s case was not unique and highlighted the country's past of executing sports champions for their convictions, including a national team leader, captain of the soccer squad, and a volleyball captain, captain of the national women’s volleyball team. In the year 2020, Navid Afkari, a 27-year Iranian competitor, was also executed.

Further supporters to the appeal include a sailing champion, who captained the pioneering female-only team in a international sailing event and was the initial female to be awarded a renowned nautical honor; the previous captain of the national squad a sports advocate; and a footballer, who was in the Iranian squad for the international competition.

Detention and Unfair Trial

The athlete was detained in early 2020. The accusations against him entailed “causing deterioration on Earth through incendiarism and damage of public property”. His sentence has been overturned twice but on October 4 it was maintained on the third occasion. His trial was criticized as “deeply biased” by advocates and groups.

Appeal to UN

The appeal to halt the boxer's death sentence follows a 2023 appeal to the global human rights chief for rights, endorsed by over 100 human rights experts and organizations, calling for measures to avert the sports figure's death.

Death Penalty Surge

According to findings, there is an “capital punishment escalation in Iran, which has achieved alarming proportions”. In 2023, the government sentenced at least over 850 people – a nearly half increase on 2022. Last year, statistics showed 972 deaths, marking the maximum count since 2015. Over eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Political prisoners and protesters are victims, notably in the wake of the the year 2022 demonstrations. Specialists say the Iranian authorities have utilized the executions to quell opposition, instil fear among the population and reinforce their grip on authority.