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In excess of twenty Olympic champions, mentors and further international athletes have put their names to a letter calling for a halt to the capital punishment of a champion boxer and coach, who is on death row in the country.

Escalating International Outrage

Amidst growing worldwide anger over the nation's increasing application of capital punishment as a instrument of repression, the forcefully phrased letter condemns the government's decision to confirm the death sentence of Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

The athlete, 30, from the city in the northeastern region, was arrested for being involved in national uprisings in the year 2019 and indicted of supporting an opposition group. He has spent half a decade in detention, where he has been mistreated and held in seclusion.

“Competition is designed to promote optimism, togetherness, and bravery,” the signatories stated. “The death penalty of a champion for his beliefs is a blatant attack on these principles and a admonition to any competitor who dares to express dissent.

History of Executing Athletes

The statement noted that the athlete's case was part of a pattern and emphasized the country's history of putting to death competitors for their views, such as Habib Khabiri, captain of the soccer squad, and a women's sports leader, skipper of the female volleyball side. In 2020, Navid Afkari, a young national wrestling champion, faced the death penalty.

Other signatories to the statement include a sailing champion, who captained the inaugural female-only team in a round-the-world competition and was the initial female to be awarded a renowned nautical honor; the former leader of the soccer side an athlete; and a sports figure, who was in the national team for the global tournament.

Apprehension and Unjust Proceedings

The boxer was taken into custody in early 2020. The allegations against him comprised “spreading corruption on Earth through incendiarism and ruin of state assets”. His sentence has been annulled multiple times but on October 4 it was maintained on the third attempt. His legal proceedings was condemned as “highly unjust” by rights defenders and groups.

Urging to United Nations

The call to prevent Vafaei Sani’s capital punishment follows a earlier letter to the United Nations official for freedoms, signed by more than a hundred rights specialists and entities, demanding intervention to prevent the sports figure's capital punishment.

Capital Punishment Escalation

As per reports, there is an “death penalty surge in the country, which has attained alarming levels”. In two thousand twenty-three, the government sentenced at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a 48% increase on 2022. The year before, statistics showed nine hundred seventy-two capital punishments, constituting the maximum count since the year 2015. More than 800 people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Dissidents and dissidents are targets, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022's uprising. Specialists say the regime have utilized the death penalty to quell dissent, instil apprehension among the citizenry and reinforce their control on rule.