Rights group warns six Iranian athletes face execution after climber's death

At least six Iranian athletes face execution after their death sentences were upheld by the country's supreme court, Human Rights for Sport has warned, according to reporting published by the Guardian on Tuesday. The warning follows the execution of mountaineer Ali-Sina Mostafavi on 14 October and concerns athletes from several sports, including mixed martial arts, boxing, swimming and football.

Mostafavi, whose climbing record included Mount Everest, was arrested in April after anti-government protests earlier this year, the Guardian reported. His execution followed that of taekwondo athlete Siavash Jamshidi Kheirabadi at the beginning of October. MMA fighter Gholamreza Khani Shakarab was hanged in May. Human Rights for Sport, an Oslo-based organisation of former Iranian athletes, says six athletes have already been executed in cases connected to January's protests or earlier political charges.

The group identified swimmer Ali Pishevarzadeh and footballer Ehsan Hosseinpour, both arrested during the January protests, among those now at risk. Boxer Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani was arrested in 2020 over participation in protests the previous year and had a retrial request rejected last year. MMA fighter Benyamin Naghdi, equestrian athlete Taraneh Rahimi and climber Maryam Siri have also received death sentences this year, the report said.

Dr Zohreh Abdollahkhani of Human Rights for Sport told the Guardian that efforts to draw attention to one athlete's case had temporarily halted his execution, but she remained concerned about the wider group. She said contacting families could be difficult because relatives were themselves being targeted by security services, describing one case involving arrests and surveillance of family telephone lines.

Abdollahkhani also said four European parliament members had written to Fifa before the World Cup about Iranian athletes facing execution without receiving a response. In a statement to the Guardian, Fifa said it was aware of the concerns and acknowledged stakeholders' work to bring attention to them.

The International Olympic Committee disputed Abdollahkhani's criticism that staffing changes had hampered access to its human rights and safeguarding structures. It said both teams remained operational and expressed concern for affected athletes. The IOC said it could not change a sovereign state's laws or political system, but would continue working through sporting organisations and diplomacy while maintaining contact with Iran's Olympic community.