Sharron Davies and Martina Navratilova are spearheading a battle to save a champion boxer facing the hangman’s noose for his political beliefs.

More than 20 world-renowned athletes and sports figures have joined the urgent appeal calling for the immediate halt of the planned execution of Mohammad Javad Vafaei, an Iranian boxing champion and coach sentenced to death for his political beliefs.

Vafaei, 30, from Mashhad (northeast Iran), has spent five years in prison facing torture and solitary confinement for taking part in the 2019 pro-democracy protests and supporting the democratic opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI or MEK). 

He is one of 16 political prisoners, including a woman, sentenced to death on charges of alleged affiliation with the MEK. 

The sports icons’ appeal follows an earlier action by Amnesty International calling on Iranian authorities to immediately quash Vafaei’s death sentence and grant him access to legal counsel and due process. Amnesty has described his conviction as “a shocking example of Iran’s use of the death penalty to silence dissent and crush political opposition.”

The signatories — including Olympic medallists, world champions, and distinguished coaches — emphasised that sport and humanity transcend politics, and that the international community cannot remain silent while a fellow athlete faces execution for his conscience.

“Sport is meant to inspire hope, unity, and courage. The execution of a champion for his political views is a direct assault on these values and a warning to every athlete who dares to speak out,” the statement reads. “We call on the United Nations, international sports federations, and governments to act immediately to save the life of Mohammad Javad. The world must not stand by while Iran silences its champions.”

Two other political prisoners were executed on July 27 on similar charges, underscoring the urgency of intervention before further lives are lost.

The athletes’ joint appeal will be submitted to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and relevant sports federations worldwide. 

The statement and signatories’ names and titles are attached.

The initiative comes amid growing international outrage over Iran’s escalating use of capital punishment as a tool of political repression. Human rights groups have documented a surge in executions — the highest in decades — with political prisoners and dissidents among the primary targets.

Mohammad Javad Vafaei was arrested in 2020 after taking part in peaceful protests and has since been held under severe conditions. Human rights groups reported he was tortured to extract forced confessions. His death sentence, based on vague and mediaeval “enmity against God” charges, has drawn widespread condemnation.

In 2023, more than 100 human rights experts and NGOs published an open letter to the UN High Commission for Human Rights requesting an urgent public call on Iranian authorities to halt his sentence.