I'm an Iranian wrestling champion — the IOC must start defending persecuted athletes

Another Iranian wrestler was executed — and erstwhile again, the IOC responded with the aforesaid words.

Whenever the International Olympic Committee speaks astir the catastrophic quality rights concern facing athletes, it repeats the aforesaid line: we cannot alteration the laws of countries.

But Iranian athletes person ne'er asked you to alteration Iran’s laws.

They asked you to enactment based connected your ain rules — and that if a subordinate of the Olympic question violates those rules, you instrumentality action.

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When you talk astir "verifying" the execution of an athlete, it is profoundly troubling. You hazard giving abstraction to the communicative of a authorities that executes a 19-year-old wrestler.

Iranian athletes did not inquire you to analyse each lawsuit oregon verify each victim. They asked thing overmuch simpler: if you cannot fulfill your duties and enforce your ain rules, past accidental it intelligibly and publicly.

Carefully chosen words and cautious statements bash not support athletes’ lives.

Our questions are simple:

Does depriving much than 45 cardinal women successful Iran of entree to galore sports interruption your rule of sex equality — yes oregon no?

Does forcing Iranian athletes, for astir fractional a century, to garbage contention against Israeli opponents interruption your rules — yes oregon no?

OLYMPIANS SPEAK OUT AGAINST IRAN'S PUBLIC EXECUTION OF CHAMPION WRESTLER SALEH MOHAMMADI

Do arrest, torture, execution, and silencing athletes interruption the Olympic Charter — yes oregon no?

The caput of Iran’s National Olympic Committee is not an autarkic sports official. He is tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — a U.S.-designated violent enactment — and is simply a erstwhile bodyguard of the Supreme Leader.

When those overseeing athletes are connected to the aforesaid strategy that represses them, however tin the Olympic Charter beryllium upheld?

OLYMPIANS CONDEMN IOC FOR STATEMENT ON IRAN'S EXECUTION OF 19-YEAR-OLD WRESTLER SALEH MOHAMMADI

How galore much athletes indispensable beryllium executed, and however galore much indispensable beryllium killed, earlier your conscience is moved?

I talk arsenic an jock and nationalist squad manager who was banned from contention and adjacent from entering a wrestling hall. My younger brother, Saman, besides a nationalist squad wrestler, was arrested, tortured, and near with a encephalon injury.

As a child, I believed the IOC was the location of athletes — a spot wherever we larn humanity and sportsmanship.

But implicit time, I came to spot thing different:

A spot wherever relationships with governments are protected — adjacent erstwhile athletes are not.

Let america beryllium honest. Appointing a fewer Iranian athletes, offering symbolic positions, oregon placing immoderate successful exile teams does not regenerate responsibility.

We are realistic. The IOC’s ngo is not to alteration governments.

But for Iranian athletes, its relation has go thing else: welcoming officials, overlooking wide violations, and remaining soundless successful the look of injustice.

In the nonaccomplishment of our opportunities and the demolition of our dreams by the Islamic regime, your soundlessness has had consequences.

In the imprisonment and sidesplitting of athletes, your soundlessness has had consequences.

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You spoke of "quiet diplomacy."

Since the execution of Navid Afkari successful 2020, athletes successful Iran person been imprisoned, tortured, killed successful the streets, oregon executed.

Your quiescent diplomacy has not protected them.

It has fixed the authorities abstraction to proceed — without fearfulness of consequences and without accountability.

You were erstwhile athletes. You knew what it meant to basal for something.

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Today, you talk similar politicians — and enactment soundless erstwhile it matters most.

And for athletes similar Saleh Mohammadi, that soundlessness comes excessively late.