LAUSANNE, February 3, 2026 – Amid the internal crisis and peaceful protests by the population against the Iranian government, AIPS has received information, confirmed by multiple sources, that among the high number of protesters killed were athletes and sports personalities. They are victims of fierce government repression. It is imperative that all harassment of athletes, sports personalities, and sports journalists in Iran stops immediately. AIPS is demanding the immediate release of those held in custody and the publication of the names of those who have died in recent weeks, while condemning all forms of violence against Iranian citizens. The Iranian government has promised to publish the list of victims. So far, it only contained 2,986 names. None of the athletes below are in it.
The following article written by AIPS member Reza Goodary adds detail to the situation:
Iran’s 2026 Sporting Purge and the War on its Icons
By Reza Goodary – AIPS Member
For decades, the stadium was the only theatre in Iran where a collective roar could legally drown out the dictates of the state. Today, those arenas are mausoleums of silence. The roar has moved to the streets, and for Iran’s elite athletes the Pahlavans, or traditional heroes the cost of this defiance has become terminal.
As the 2026 revolution enters a bloody, decisive phase, the Islamic Republic is no longer merely arresting dissidents; it is methodically liquidating its sporting elite.
The data, obtained through encrypted networks and verified by human rights monitors, paints a harrowing picture. In the first month of 2026 alone, the “red list” of the fallen has grown exponentially:
KILLED ATHLETES Massoud Zatparvar (also known as Mehdi Zadparvar), a world-renowned bodybuilding icon, was gunned down. According to reports cited by The Guardian, the killing took place in Rasht, though details regarding the exact location remain subject to conflicting accounts amidst the unrest. In Karaj, the body of Ahmad Asghari, a prominent fitness figure, was left in the street—a macabre warning to the city’s youth.
The death of Sahar (Zeynab) Fard, a taekwondo champion and Pilates instructor, has sent shockwaves through the underground resistance. Reports indicate she was killed by a gunshot in Qarchak; her blood-stained white sneakers have since become a viral symbol of the revolution’s female vitality.
The executions and “street killings” of Arshia Ahmadpour (an 18-year-old boxer killed on the street during protests) and Mahan Mardani (a 23-year-old goalkeeper) underline the terrifying reality.
DEATH SENTENCES The case of former grassroots footballer Mohammad Hossein Hosseini, faces imminent death sentences for “Moharebeh” (enmity against God). Saleh Mohammadi, a 19-year-old wrestling medalist and bronze winner of the Saitiev Cup, is currently at imminent risk of execution in Qom. His case has drawn the attention of the U.S. State Department, citing his age and the lack of due process.
In a move that has shocked the sporting world, Sasan Khodaparast, the former captain of Iran’s national volleyball team, has been detained. Credible reports indicate he is facing imminent capital charges. Khodaparast is not merely an athlete; he is a pillar of Iranian volleyball history.
Parviz Khosravi, a veteran basketball referee and coach, has been transferred to the “death row” section of Vakilabad Prison. Khosravi’s transfer is often the final administrative step before a secret execution.
Meanwhile, according to the 66 Human Rights and Media Report, the Supreme Court has finalized the death sentence of Mohammad-Javad Vafaei-Sani, a boxing champion whose case has been a shuttlecock in a Kafkaesque legal system for months and the plea for a retrial, denied.
The detention of Amirhassan Ghaderzadeh, a 19-year-old star for Sepahan FC, have been reported as another death sentence, but latest reports show his sentence appears to have been commuted.
ARRESTS The detention of coaches like Iran’s U23 national coach Omid Ravankhah —who, according to Iran International, was detained and interrogated for several hours upon arrival in Tehran— and players like Reza Shekari have created global outcry. Roozbeh Sineki, a veteran goalkeeper formerly of Gol Gohar FC, was abducted by security forces on January 25 following his vocal online support for victims of the crackdown. His current whereabouts remain unknown.
FINANCIAL ATTACK The state has also launched a campaign of systemic dispossession. Legendary figures like Ali Daei, one of world football’s most prolific scorers, remain under intense economic siege. For the “crime” of moral leadership, the state has moved to freeze assets and seize properties of sporting icons with global prestige.
The most recent high-profile target is Mehdi Ghayedi. The national team star, currently abroad, has been branded a “traitor” by state media. Following his refusal to return and his vocal support for the “martyrs of the pitch,” his assets in Iran have been slated for state confiscation a desperate attempt to bankrupt the movement’s most visible voices.
WHY ATHLETES? The targeting of athletes is a calculated tactical move. In Iranian culture, the athlete is a moral compass. When a champion wrestler like Alireza Nejati or a boxing medalist like Mohammad Mahshari “disappear” into the black hole of Evin Prison, the regime is attempting to decapitate the revolution’s physical vitality.
“The state is terrified of the ‘Athlete-Citizen’,” says an Iranian sports journalist currently in hiding. “An athlete has the lungs to lead a chant and the physical courage to stand at the vanguard. By killing them, the regime hopes to suffocate the breath of the streets.”
LIONESSES EXODUS For Iran’s elite sportswomen, the national team jersey—once a symbol of hard-won visibility—has become a shroud of complicity. In a coordinated wave of defiance that has rattled the Ministry of Sports, the female pillars of Iranian football have begun a mass exodus.
Zahra Alizadeh, a cornerstone of the national football team and a star for Gol Gohar Sirjan, stunned the federation by announcing her immediate resignation. She was swiftly followed by Kowsar Kamali, the powerhouse defender for Eista.
The dissent reached the pinnacle of Asian sports with Sara Shirbeigi, the legendary “Golden Girl” and top scorer of Asian futsal. Shirbeigi, whose career has been a testament to female endurance in the Islamic Republic, signaled the end of her international era with a poignant tribute to the “suffering of the masses.” More are following this trend.
PODIUM OF MARTYRS The 2026 revolution has stripped away the facade of “sportsmanship” in the Islamic Republic. The “Podium of Martyrs” is now more crowded than the medal stands of Tehran’s Azadi Stadium. For the athletes of Iran, the choice is no longer between gold or silver; it is the heavy price of dignity in a time of death.
The question is whether the international community will act before the next generation of Iranian talent is entirely extinguished.
