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The execution of Iranian wrestling star Saleh Mohammadi left the sports world mourning Thursday.
Iran’s regime executed the 19-year-old man on Thursday. Mohammadi was reportedly killed in a public hanging, according to Iranian American human rights activists and dissidents.
Iran International reported that Iran’s regime hanged Mohammadi and two additional Iranian men, Mehdi Ghasemiand and Saeed Davoudi, “after being accused of killing two police officers during nationwide protests earlier this year,” the judiciary-linked Mizan news agency reported.
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Multiple Olympians have shared their reactions to the execution with Fox News Digital.
Brandon Slay, Olympic gold medal wrestler at Sydney 2000
Brandon Slay of the U.S. during the men’s 76-kilogram Greco-Roman wrestling semifinal at the Exhibition Halls during the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. (Ross Kinnaird/Allsport)
“As someone who has traveled to Iran for wrestling twice and welcomed Iranian athletes into our country, I’ve seen firsthand the dignity and heart of the Iranian people. That’s why it’s so heartbreaking to witness a terror regime execute a teenage wrestler,” Slay told Fox News Digital.
“My prayers are with Saleh Mohammadi’s family and all who are suffering. In the face of such oppression, I hold to the hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the only light that overcomes darkness and only truth that proclaims justice and mercy will one day prevail.”
Tyler Clary, US gold medal swimmer at London 2012
U.S. swimmer Tyler Clary celebrates winning gold in the men’s 200-meter backstroke final at the London 2012 Olympic Games Aug. 2, 2012, in London. (Christophe Simon/AFP)
“As an Olympic gold medalist, I’ve spent my life around athletes who represent the very best of human discipline and freedom. What we’re seeing in Iran — the execution of a wrestler after what appears to be a sham process — is a brutal reminder of what that regime stands for. This is exactly why strong leadership matters,” Clary told Fox News Digital.
“President Trump has been clear-eyed about the nature of this regime and the need to stand up to it, and moments like this prove why that approach is necessary.”
Kaillie Humphries, three-time gold medal bobsled athlete for US and Canada
“The actions of the Iranian regime are beyond abhorrent. Murdering any teenager for the ‘crime’ of speaking out is unacceptable. Murdering a teenager who was specifically targeted because he is a champion athlete and icon of his country is even worse,” Humphries told Fox News Digital.
“This is a sad day for the sporting community. It highlights the absolute unthinkable differences of freedom we have in the USA as athletes to speak our opinions. Yes, I may get a few mean comments on social media, but I don’t have to fear for my life. I pray there is justice for his family and freedom for their athletes.”
Eli Bremer, US modern pentathlete at Beijing 2008
Eli Bremer of the United States celebrates at the Fencing Hall during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Aug. 21, 2008, in Beijing, China. (Nick Laham/Getty Images)
“I’m beyond disgusted by the actions of the Iranian regime today. Murdering a teenaged iconic athlete shows how deeply depraved the Iranian leadership is. President Trump has and continues to do the right thing to ensure this regime is destroyed. A regime that is willing to murder a teenaged athlete is a regime that would be willing to murder Americans if given the chance,” Bremmer told Fox News Digital.
“I will continue to support President Trump in taking the leadership to disarm Iran and ensure that the monsters running the country are never able to commit these atrocities against their citizens, Americans or our allies ever again.”
Katie Uhlaender, US skeleton athlete, six-time Olympian
Katie Uhlaender of the United States poses for a portrait during the Team USA Beijing 2022 Olympic shoot in Irvine, Calif., Sept. 12, 2021. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images for Team USA)
“My heart breaks for this athlete and his family. What makes this more devastating is there were clear, urgent calls for action,” Uhlaender told Fox News Digital.
“These athletes did nothing wrong. They represented their sport and their country, and instead of being protected, they were left exposed to a system that failed to act when it mattered most.
“The United States is in a unique position to lead on this issue. Through sport diplomacy and international engagement, we have the ability to set a higher standard, one where athlete safety is non-negotiable, where warnings are acted upon and where governing bodies are held accountable for their failures to protect. Sport can serve as a symbol of integrity and unity. Action, not silence, must define our response moving forward.”
STATE DEPARTMENT DEMANDS IRAN HALT EXECUTION OF 19-YEAR-OLD WRESTLING STAR
AJ Edelman, Israel bobsled and skeleton athlete, two-time Olympian
Israel’s Adam Edelman takes off his helmet after a training session for the mens’s skeleton during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Olympic Sliding Centre Feb. 14, 2018. (Ohd Rasfan/AFP via Getty Images)
“He was hanged for envisioning an Iran free from the predations of a regime now headed by an impotent nepo baby whose father thought him so incompetent he couldn’t run a lemonade stand. His sacrifice is proof that such a cause was just,” Edelman told Fox News Digital.
Sardar Pashaei, Iran youth world champion wrestler (non-Olympian)
“This is only a glimpse of the regime’s brutality. A regime that kills its own people and now publicly executes a teenage athlete. For nearly 50 years, some politicians have tried to moderate this regime. They still don’t understand it. We do. We have lived under it. We carry its scars,” Pashaei told Fox News Digital.
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“Iranian sport is no longer in the hands of athletes. It is controlled by the Revolutionary Guards, the same forces that suppress women, intimidate athletes abroad and threaten their families.
“Others are still at risk, and there is still time to save them. The world must act now. Saleh’s only ‘crime’ was protest. He went to the streets for freedom, for a future where protest is not a crime, where executions do not exist and where people are not held hostage by their own government.”
Fox News Digital’s Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.
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