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More than two dozen Olympic medal winners, coaches and further world-class competitors have signed a appeal demanding a halt to the death penalty of a boxing titleholder and trainer, who is on death row in the country.

Increasing International Outrage

During increasing global condemnation over the country's escalating use of capital punishment as a instrument of oppression, the strongly worded letter censures the government's decision to confirm the execution order of the boxing champion.

Vafaei Sani, three decades old, from the city in the northern province, was detained for participating in nationwide protests in 2019 and accused of aiding an resistance movement. He has spent half a decade in detention, where he has been mistreated and kept in isolation.

“Sport is intended to promote hope, solidarity, and fortitude,” the supporters stated. “The death penalty of a champion for his political views is a blatant attack on these values and a warning to all sportspeople who ventures to voice opinions.

Pattern of Killing Athletes

The appeal noted that the athlete's situation was not unique and emphasized the country's past of putting to death sports champions for their beliefs, including a football captain, captain of the football side, and a volleyball captain, skipper of the women's volleyball squad. In two thousand twenty, Navid Afkari, a 27-year-old national wrestling champion, was put to death.

Other endorsers to the appeal include Tracy Edwards, who led the first women's squad in a international sailing event and was the pioneering lady to receive a prestigious yachting trophy; the former skipper of the national squad Craig Foster; and Bahram Mavaddat, who was in the national team for the global tournament.

Arrest and Unfair Trial

Vafaei Sani was detained in March 2020. The accusations against him comprised “causing deterioration on Earth through fire-setting and destruction of public property”. His verdict has been annulled on two occasions but on the fourth of October it was confirmed on the third attempt. His court case was denounced as “deeply biased” by rights defenders and groups.

Appeal to International Body

The urging to prevent Vafaei Sani’s death sentence follows a earlier statement to the United Nations official for human rights, endorsed by more than a hundred human rights experts and organizations, calling for measures to avert the athlete’s execution.

Death Penalty Surge

According to findings, there is an “capital punishment escalation in Iran, which has reached alarming dimensions”. In 2023, the government executed at least eight hundred fifty-three people – a nearly half surge on 2022. Last year, records showed nine hundred seventy-two deaths, representing the peak figure since 2015. Over 800 people have been executed so far in the current year.

Political prisoners and dissidents are focus, particularly in the aftermath of the 2022's protests. Experts say the regime have used the capital punishment to quell opposition, instil fear among the citizenry and strengthen their control on authority.