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A coalition of seven Olympians from several countries, including three gold medalists, has spoken out to condemn the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for its response to the execution of Iranian wrestler Saleh Mohammadi.
After Mohammadi was reportedly hanged in public last week, the IOC issued a statement saying: “It is very difficult to comment on the situation of individuals during conflict or unrest in a country without the IOC being able to verify the often contradictory information…
“The IOC, as a civil non-governmental organization, has neither the mandate nor the capacity to change the laws or political system of a sovereign country.”
Today, the seven Olympians share their objections to the IOC not condemning Iran for this execution.
The IOC told PK Press Club Digital it stands by its initial statement.
Nancy Hogshead, three-time American Olympic gold medalist swimmer
Nancy Hogshead, senior director of advocacy for the Women’s Sports Foundation, attends the 40 for 40 event, 40 Years of Title IX, 40 Women Who Made an Impact, at the JW Marriott Hotel on June 21, 2012 in Washington, DC. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for WICT)
“I’m amazed that the IOC couldn’t denounce the murder of a teenage wrestler in Iran. The governing bodies of the Olympics are apolitical, but denouncing the murder of an athlete for political purposes is not political…it’s just doing the right thing,” Hogshead told PK Press Club Digital.
“Olympians deserve better. The IOC can and must oppose the execution of athletes by violent regimes for political purposes.”
Tyler Clary, American swimmer who won gold at London 2012
American swimmer Tyler Clary celebrates his gold medal during the men’s 200m backstroke swimming final at the London 2012 Olympic Games on August 2, 2012 in London. (CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP)
“The IOC statement reads like corporate damage control, not moral leadership,” Clary told PK Press Club Digital.
“Hiding behind neutrality and bureaucracy is not leadership, it is avoidance. The IOC claims it does not have the power to influence sovereign nations, but it has never hesitated to take strong positions when it serves its interests. To suddenly claim impartiality when an athlete is killed shows a lack of courage and an inability to defend the very people who make the Olympic movement possible.”
Maciej Czyzowicz, Polish pentathlete and gold medalist at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics
Maciej Czyzowicz, Polish Pentathalon gold medalist (Courtesy of Maciej Czyzowicz)
“The lack of action and determination from the International Olympic Committee is outrageous. Iran should be banned from the Olympics for its behavior unless the regime is toppled and new leadership comes to power,” Czyzowicz told PK Press Club Digital.
“If the IOC is unable to defend the life of an innocent teenage athlete, it completely loses all moral credibility. With this statement, it has shown that it does not care whether any of the countries in the Olympic movement violate human and civil rights.”
Keith Sanderson, American Olympic shooter, four-time Olympian
Keith Sanderson during day 7 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Royal Artillery Barracks on August 3, 2012 in London, England. (Lars Baron/Getty Images)
“It’s sort of the same thing as the IOC. They’re getting rich at the expense of athletes and can’t even stand up and say that any regime, including Iran, murdering a teenage athlete is categorically wrong,” Sanderson told PK Press Club Digital.
“The IOC has been known for its corruption for years, but this is unacceptable. If the IOC wants to demonstrate any modicum of morality or credibility, it should denounce this murder and impose sanctions on Iran until its leadership changes or apologizes for this brutal execution.”
Ruben Gonzalez, Argentine Olympic luge athlete, four-time Olympian
Ruben Gonzalez of Argentina after completing the final run of the men’s luge singles final on the third day of the 2010 Winter Olympics at the Whistler Sliding Center on February 14, 2010 in Whistler, Canada. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)
“The IOC’s refusal to denounce Iran for killing the teenage wrestler is shameful. But that’s how they’ve always been. All they care about is themselves,” Gonzalez told PK Press Club Digital. “For the IOC, athletes are just pawns for profit. Time and again, it has put its own interests ahead of those of the athletes it claims to represent. If the IOC has any integrity left, it should publicly condemn this act and take decisive action against Iran.”
Katie Uhlaender, American skeleton athlete, five-time Olympian
U.S. skeleton team hopeful Katie Uhlaender poses for a photo during the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team Media Summit at the Grand Summit Hotel on September 25, 2017. (Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports)
“The IOC’s claim that it is only a ‘civilian organization’ is a convenient excuse for inaction. They used it to avoid accountability in the Russian state-sponsored doping crisis, and they are now using it for the safety of Iranian athletes. Whether it is doping in China, competition manipulation in Canada, or the stolen moments of American skaters in 2022, the pattern is the same: the IOC cannot not or willing to protect the people who make the Games possible,” Uhlaender said. PK Press Club Digital.
“If the IOC insists that protecting athletes is a state responsibility, then the United States has an opportunity to lead by example as we approach Los Angeles 2028. It’s time to stop waiting and start setting the standards for athlete safety and integrity ourselves.”
Eli Bremer, American modern pentathlete in Beijing 2008
Eli Bremer of the United States celebrates during the One Touch Men’s Modern Pentathlon Fencing Epee held at the Fencing Hall during day 13 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 21, 2008 in Beijing, China. (Nick Laham/Getty Images)
“I thought the IOC had been morally bankrupt for years and therefore didn’t have particularly high expectations of it. That said, I thought the murder of a teenage athlete by his own country would be something that even the IOC could understand and denounce,” Bremer told PK Press Club Digital.
“The fact that they cannot say publicly that Iran’s killing of this teenager who became a national icon is wrong only confirms how completely out of touch this organization is with reality. I think sports organizations in general should stay away from politics. But they can and should rely on basic humanity and say that the killing of athletes is wrong. The fact that the IOC cannot do that says a lot about them.”
Afsoon Roshanzamir Johnston, Olympic women’s wrestling coach of the Iranian-born American team at Rio 2016
“As a world-class athlete of Iranian descent, coach and pioneer of women’s wrestling, I am deeply disappointed by the International Olympic Committee’s recent statement regarding the execution of 19-year-old wrestler Saleh Mohammadi,” Johnston told PK Press Club Digital.
“By defining its role as a ‘non-governmental organization’ with no mandate to influence national affairs, the IOC strays from the very principles of the Olympic Charter. The charter aims to promote a ‘peaceful society, concerned with the preservation of human dignity,’ but when a young champion is barbarically and publicly hanged by state-sanctioned execution, ‘quiet diplomacy’ seems painfully inadequate.
“Political neutrality should not lead to passivity when athletes face brutality sanctioned by a terrorist state. Such a “safe” response sends a troubling message to athletes in Iran and elsewhere: the athlete’s life and safety are secondary to organizational protocol.
“We don’t need the IOC to change a country’s laws, we need them to stand up and use their huge platform to support and help protect athletes.”
What happened to Saleh Mohammadi?
Mohammadi was reportedly killed in a public hanging on Thursday, according to Iranian-American human rights activists and dissidents.
Iran International reported that the Iranian regime hanged Mohammadi and two other Iranian men, Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi, “after they were accused of killing two police officers during nationwide protests earlier this year,” the judiciary-linked Mizan news agency reported.
Mohammadi previously told the Islamic Republic of Iran TV channel that his dream was to become an Olympic champion.
Mohammadi won a bronze medal in September 2024 for Iranian national freestyle wrestling at the Saytiyev International Cup in Krasnoyarsk, Russia.
