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More than two dozen Olympic medal winners, trainers and additional international athletes have signed a letter demanding a end to the capital punishment of a boxing titleholder and trainer, who is facing execution in the country.

Growing Worldwide Condemnation

During growing global condemnation over Iran’s increasing application of capital punishment as a means of oppression, the powerfully expressed letter censures the authorities's decision to maintain the death sentence of the athlete.

The boxer, 30, from the city in the northeastern region, was arrested for taking part in national uprisings in the year 2019 and indicted of supporting an opposition group. He has passed five years in incarceration, where he has been abused and kept in solitary confinement.

“Competition is designed to encourage optimism, solidarity, and bravery,” the signatories stated. “The capital punishment of a champion for his opinions is a blatant attack on these principles and a admonition to every athlete who attempts to speak out.

History of Putting to Death Competitors

The appeal said that the athlete's circumstances was not an isolated one and emphasized Iran’s past of sentencing to death sports champions for their convictions, such as a football captain, leader of the soccer squad, and a women's sports leader, skipper of the national women’s volleyball team. In the year 2020, Navid Afkari, a 27-year Iranian competitor, faced the death penalty.

Additional signatories to the statement comprise a yachting pioneer, who skippered the first women's squad in a international sailing event and was the pioneering lady to earn a esteemed nautical honor; the ex- skipper of the Australian football team an athlete; and a sports figure, who was in the Iranian squad for the international competition.

Detention and Unjust Proceedings

The athlete was detained in the spring of 2020. The allegations against him entailed “causing deterioration on Earth through arson and ruin of government belongings”. His sentence has been overturned twice but on 4 October it was confirmed on the third attempt. His trial was condemned as “highly unjust” by human rights activists and bodies.

Appeal to UN

The call to halt the athlete's execution comes after a 2023 statement to the UN high commissioner for freedoms, backed by over 100 human rights experts and entities, demanding intervention to prevent the competitor's death.

Capital Punishment Escalation

According to reports, there is an “capital punishment escalation in the country, which has achieved horrific proportions”. In the year 2023, the government put to death at least 853 people – a 48% surge on the previous year. In the prior period, records showed 972 capital punishments, representing the highest number since two thousand fifteen. In excess of eight hundred people have been sentenced so far in the current year.

Activists and protesters are targets, notably in the aftermath of the the year 2022 uprising. Analysts say the Iranian authorities have employed the capital punishment to suppress protest, instil apprehension among the public and tighten their grip on rule.