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More than 20 Olympic champions, trainers and further world-class competitors have endorsed a appeal demanding a end to the capital punishment of a champion boxer and trainer, who is on death row in the nation.

Increasing Worldwide Condemnation

Amid growing global condemnation over Iran’s increasing application of capital punishment as a means of oppression, the strongly worded appeal condemns the authorities's decision to confirm the execution order of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

The boxer, three decades old, from the city in the northern province, was taken into custody for being involved in countrywide demonstrations in 2019 and accused of supporting an opposition group. He has endured five years in prison, where he has been tortured and held in solitary confinement.

“Sport is meant to inspire faith, unity, and bravery,” the endorsers expressed. “The capital punishment of a champion for his opinions is a clear violation on these principles and a caution to any competitor who dares to speak out.

Record of Executing Competitors

The appeal said that the boxer's case was part of a pattern and underscored the nation's history of sentencing to death competitors for their views, including a football captain, skipper of the soccer squad, and a women's sports leader, captain of the female volleyball side. In 2020, Navid Afkari, a 27-year national sports titleholder, was also executed.

Other supporters to the letter consist of a sailing champion, who led the first female-only team in a global yacht race and was the pioneering lady to earn a renowned nautical honor; the former leader of the soccer side Craig Foster; and Bahram Mavaddat, who was in the Iranian squad for the 1978 World Cup.

Arrest and Flawed Legal Process

Vafaei Sani was taken into custody in March 2020. The charges against him included “causing deterioration on Earth through incendiarism and damage of public property”. His sentence has been annulled on two occasions but on the fourth of October it was maintained on the third occasion. His legal proceedings was condemned as “highly unjust” by advocates and organizations.

Call to UN

The urging to prevent Vafaei Sani’s capital punishment is subsequent to a 2023 statement to the global human rights chief for freedoms, signed by in excess of 100 human rights experts and groups, urging measures to avert the athlete’s capital punishment.

Execution Crisis

Based on data, there is an “death penalty surge in the country, which has reached horrific proportions”. In the year 2023, authorities put to death at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a 48% increase on the previous year. In the prior period, data showed 972 executions, representing the peak figure since the year 2015. Over eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Activists and protesters are victims, notably in the aftermath of the 2022 protests. Experts say the regime have utilized the executions to stifle opposition, create fear among the public and strengthen their grip on authority.