Ali Safavi: Iranian Athletes Lead Fight for Freedom

As global attention increasingly turns toward major international sporting events, particularly the upcoming FIFA World Cup, it is becoming ever more important to shed light on the abuses suffered by Iranian athletes under the rule of the clerical regime. 

A regime that has long sought to turn sports into a political and security tool has relentlessly targeted athletes who refused to submit to its authority or who chose to stand with their people.

Ali Safavi, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), stated:

“The rally and exhibition held in Los Angeles with the participation of prominent Iranian sports figures demonstrate an important reality: Iran’s athletic community has never been detached from the struggle for freedom and democracy. On the contrary, it has often stood at the forefront of social forces paying a heavy price for resisting tyranny.”

He added:

“For decades, the Iranian regime has attempted to subordinate sports to its ideological and political agenda, using athletic institutions as instruments of surveillance and control. Yet many athletes and national champions chose to stand with their people, making them targets of persecution, imprisonment, exclusion, and even execution.”

Safavi noted that:

“The exhibition in Los Angeles, which highlighted the stories of athletes and sports figures who sacrificed their lives for freedom, confirms that the Iranian people’s memory remains alive and that the regime’s efforts to erase these sacrifices have failed. Those heroes have become enduring symbols inspiring new generations of Iranian youth.”

He stressed:

“The attention these events received from American and international media demonstrates that the human rights situation in Iran is no longer merely a domestic issue. It has become a matter of growing international concern, particularly when young people and athletes are among the victims.”

He further stated:

“What the regime fears is not sports itself, but the spirit represented by these young men and women. Athletes hold a unique social influence, and when they align themselves with the values of freedom and justice, they help break the barrier of fear and strengthen confidence in democratic change.”

Safavi concluded:

“The message from Los Angeles is clear: the Iranian people reject religious dictatorship and reject any return to past forms of authoritarian rule. The future lies in a democratic republic founded on popular sovereignty, political pluralism, equality, and the separation of religion and state—the very principles for which the Iranian people and their organized resistance continue to struggle.”