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More than 20 Olympic champions, mentors and further global sports figures have endorsed a statement demanding a end to the capital punishment of a boxing champion and trainer, who is facing execution in Iran.

Growing Global Anger

Amid rising worldwide anger over Iran’s escalating use of capital punishment as a instrument of oppression, the forcefully phrased letter condemns the Iranian regime's verdict to uphold the capital punishment of the athlete.

Vafaei Sani, 30, from Mashhad in the northern province, was arrested for participating in countrywide demonstrations in two thousand nineteen and indicted of aiding an resistance movement. He has endured half a decade in detention, where he has been abused and kept in seclusion.

“Competition is intended to promote faith, solidarity, and courage,” the supporters wrote. “The execution of a winner for his opinions is a direct assault on these values and a caution to every athlete who attempts to speak out.

History of Putting to Death Athletes

The appeal noted that the athlete's situation was not an isolated one and highlighted Iran’s past of sentencing to death athletes for their convictions, including Habib Khabiri, leader of the national football team, and a volleyball captain, leader of the women's volleyball squad. In 2020, Navid Afkari, a 27-year-old national competitor, was put to death.

Additional signatories to the letter comprise a yachting pioneer, who skippered the pioneering women's squad in a international sailing event and was the pioneering lady to receive a prestigious sailing award; the former skipper of the national squad an athlete; and a sports figure, who was in the Iranian squad for the 1978 World Cup.

Arrest and Unfair Trial

The boxer was arrested in the spring of 2020. The charges against him entailed “causing deterioration on Earth through incendiarism and destruction of government belongings”. His verdict has been overturned twice but on 4 October it was maintained on the third attempt. His trial was denounced as “grossly unfair” by advocates and organizations.

Appeal to UN

The appeal to prevent the boxer's capital punishment comes after a 2023 letter to the United Nations official for rights, backed by over a hundred human rights experts and entities, calling for action to stop the sports figure's capital punishment.

Execution Crisis

As per reports, there is an “execution crisis in the nation, which has achieved alarming dimensions”. In 2023, the government executed at least 853 people – a 48% rise on 2022. Last year, data showed 972 capital punishments, constituting the maximum count since 2015. In excess of eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in 2025.

Dissidents and opponents are targets, particularly in the wake of the the year 2022 uprising. Specialists say the regime have employed the capital punishment to quell dissent, instil anxiety among the public and strengthen their grip on authority.