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Over twenty Olympic medallists, coaches and additional global sports figures have endorsed a appeal calling for a halt to the execution of a boxing titleholder and coach, who is facing execution in the nation.

Growing Worldwide Condemnation

Amid rising global condemnation over the nation's increasing application of executions as a tool of oppression, the powerfully expressed appeal censures the Iranian regime's decision to maintain the execution order of the athlete.

Vafaei Sani, thirty, from the city in north-east Iran, was arrested for being involved in nationwide protests in 2019 and indicted of supporting an opposition group. He has spent half a decade in detention, where he has been tortured and held in seclusion.

“Athletics is designed to inspire hope, unity, and bravery,” the endorsers stated. “The execution of a winner for his political views is a blatant attack on these values and a admonition to every athlete who dares to voice opinions.

Record of Putting to Death Sports Figures

The statement said that Vafaei Sani’s case was not unique and underscored the country's history of sentencing to death competitors for their views, such as a football captain, captain of the soccer squad, and Fourouzan Abdi, captain of the women's volleyball squad. In two thousand twenty, Navid Afkari, a 27-year national competitor, was put to death.

Further supporters to the statement include a sailing champion, who captained the first all-female crew in a round-the-world competition and was the initial female to earn a esteemed sailing award; the former leader of the Australian football team a sports advocate; and Bahram Mavaddat, who was in the national team for the international competition.

Apprehension and Unjust Proceedings

The athlete was detained in early 2020. The accusations against him entailed “promoting decay on Earth through arson and ruin of state assets”. His verdict has been overturned twice but on October 4 it was confirmed on the latest review. His trial was criticized as “highly unjust” by rights defenders and groups.

Appeal to UN

The call to halt the athlete's capital punishment follows a 2023 letter to the UN high commissioner for freedoms, endorsed by in excess of a hundred advocates and organizations, urging action to stop the competitor's capital punishment.

Execution Crisis

Based on data, there is an “capital punishment escalation in the nation, which has reached horrific levels”. In two thousand twenty-three, officials executed at least over 850 people – a nearly half surge on 2022. Last year, records showed nine hundred seventy-two executions, marking the maximum count since 2015. More than hundreds of people have been executed so far in 2025.

Political prisoners and protesters are victims, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022 demonstrations. Experts say the government have used the capital punishment to suppress opposition, generate anxiety among the population and strengthen their grip on authority.