Olympians condemn IOC for statement on Iran's execution of 19-year-old wrestler Saleh Mohammadi

A conjugation of 7 Olympians crossed aggregate countries, including 3 golden medalists, person travel guardant to condemn the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for its effect to the execution of Iranian wrestler Saleh Mohammadi. 

After Mohammadi was reportedly hanged successful nationalist past week, the IOC released a connection that said, "It is precise hard to remark connected situations of individuals during a struggle oregon unrest successful a state without the IOC being capable to verify the often contradicting information...

"The IOC, arsenic a civil, non-governmental organization, has neither the remit nor the quality to alteration the laws oregon governmental strategy of a sovereign country."

Now, the 7 Olympians are sharing their objections to the IOC not condemning Iran for the execution. 

The IOC told Fox News Digital it stood by its archetypal statement.  

Nancy Hogshead, three-time US Olympic golden medal swimmer

Women's Sports Foundation Senior Director of Advocacy Nancy Hogshead attends 40 For 40 Event, 40 Years of Title IX, 40 Women Who Have Made an Impact, astatine JW Marriott Hotel connected June 21, 2012 successful Washington, DC. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for WICT)

"I’m flabbergasted that the IOC could not denounce the execution of a teenage wrestler successful Iran. The governing organizations of the Olympics are non-political, but denouncing the execution of an jock for governmental purposes is not political… it is conscionable doing the close thing," Hogshead told Fox News Digital. 

"Olympians merit better. The IOC tin and should basal against the execution of athletes by convulsive regimes for governmental purposes."

Tyler Clary, US golden medal swimmer astatine London 2012

US swimmer Tyler Clary celebrates winning golden successful the men's 200m backstroke last swimming lawsuit astatine the London 2012 Olympic Games connected August 2, 2012 successful London.   (CHRISTOPHE SIMON / AFP)

"The IOC’s connection reads similar firm harm control, not motivation leadership," Clary told Fox News Digital. 

"Hiding down neutrality and bureaucracy isn’t leadership, it’s avoidance. The IOC says it doesn’t person the authorization to power sovereign nations, but it has ne'er hesitated to instrumentality beardown positions erstwhile it suits its interests. To abruptly assertion impartiality erstwhile an jock is killed shows a deficiency of backbone and a nonaccomplishment to basal up for the precise radical who marque the Olympic question possible."

Maciej Czyzowicz, Poland Olympic golden medal pentathlete astatine Barcelona 1992

Poland Pentathalon golden medalist Maciej Czyzowicz (Courtesy of Maciej Czyzowicz)

"The International Olympic Committee’s deficiency of enactment and resoluteness is outrageous. Iran should beryllium banned from the Olympic Games for its behavior, unless the authorities is overthrown and a caller enactment comes to power," Czyzowicz told Fox News Digital. 

"If the IOC is incapable to basal up for the beingness of an guiltless teenage athlete, it has wholly mislaid each motivation credibility. With this connection they showed that they don’t attraction if immoderate of Olympic question countries interruption quality and civilian rights"

Keith Sanderson, US Olympic shooter, four-time Olympian

Keith Sanderson connected Day 7 of the London 2012 Olympic Games astatine The Royal Artillery Barracks connected August 3, 2012 successful London, England. (Lars Baron/Getty Images)

"This is benignant of par for the people with the IOC. They enrich themselves astatine the disbursal of athletes and cannot adjacent basal up and accidental that immoderate regime, including Iran, murdering a teenage jock is categorically wrong," Sanderson told Fox News Digital. 

"The IOC has been known to beryllium corrupt for years, but this is beyond the pale. If the IOC wants to amusement immoderate shred of morality oregon credibility, they should denounce this execution and enforce sanctions connected Iran until their enactment changes oregon they apologize for this brutal execution."

Ruben Gonzalez, Argentina Olympic luge athlete, four-time Olympian

Ruben Gonzalez of Argentina aft finishing the last tally of the men's luge singles last connected time 3 of the 2010 Winter Olympics astatine Whistler Sliding Centre connected February 14, 2010 successful Whistler, Canada. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)

"The IOC’s refusal to talk retired against Iran for sidesplitting the teenage wrestler is shameful. But that's however they've ever been. All they attraction is astir themselves," Gonzalez told Fox News Digital. "As acold arsenic the IOC's concerned, the athletes are simply pawns that let them to profit. Time and again, it has enactment its ain interests up of the athletes it claims to represent. If the IOC has immoderate integrity left, it should publically condemn the enactment and instrumentality decisive enactment against Iran."

Katie Uhlaender, US skeleton athlete, five-time Olympian

Team USA skeleton hopeful Katie Uhlaender poses for a photograph during the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team media acme astatine the Grand Summit Hotel connected Sept. 25, 2017. (Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports)

"The IOC’s assertion that they are conscionable a 'civil organization' is simply a convenient excuse for inaction. They utilized it to dodge accountability for the Russian state-sponsored doping crisis, and they are utilizing it present regarding the information of Iranian athletes. Whether it’s doping successful China, contention manipulation successful Canada, oregon the stolen moments of U.S. skaters successful 2022, the signifier is the same: the IOC cannot oregon volition not support the radical who marque the Games possible," Uhlaender told Fox News Digital. 

"If the IOC insists that jock extortion is simply a authorities responsibility, past the United States has an accidental to pb by illustration arsenic it heads into LA 2028. It’s clip to halt waiting and commencement mounting the modular for jock information and integrity ourselves."

Eli Bremer, US modern pentathlete astatine Beijing 2008

Eli Bremer of the United States celebrates successful the Men's Modern Pentathlon Fencing Epee One Touch held astatine the Fencing Hall during Day 13 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games connected August 21, 2008 successful Beijing, China.  (Nick Laham/Getty Images)

"I’ve believed IOC has been morally bankrupt for years and frankincense not had peculiarly precocious expectations for them. That said, I assumed the execution of a teenage jock by his ain state would beryllium thing adjacent the IOC could fig retired and denounce," Bremer told Fox News Digital. 

"The information that they cannot travel retired and accidental that Iran’s execution of this teen who had go a nationalist icon is incorrect simply confirms however wholly retired of interaction this enactment is. I judge sports organizations mostly should enactment retired of politics. But they tin and should basal connected basal humanity and accidental that murdering athletes is wrong. The information that the IOC cannot bash this speaks volumes astir them."

Afsoon Roshanzamir Johnston, Iranian-born Team USA Olympic women's wrestling manager astatine Rio 2016

"As an Iranian calved world-class athlete, coach, and trailblazer for women successful wrestling, I americium profoundly disappointed by the International Olympic Committee’s caller connection regarding the execution of 19 year-old young wrestler, Saleh Mohammadi," Johnston told Fox News Digital.

"By framing its relation arsenic a 'non-governmental organization' without the remit to power nationalist affairs, the IOC is stepping distant from the precise principles of the Olympic charter. The charter aims to beforehand a ‘peaceful society, acrophobic with the preservation of quality dignity,’ yet erstwhile a young champion is barbarically and publically hanged by a authorities sanctioned execution, ‘quiet diplomacy’ feels painfully inadequate. 

"Political neutrality should not effect successful passivity erstwhile athletes look violent authorities sanctioned brutality. Such a "safe" response, sends a troubling connection to athletes successful Iran and elsewhere; that the beingness and information of the jock is secondary to organizational protocol.

"We don’t request the IOC to alteration a country‘s laws, we request them to basal up and usage their immense level to enactment and assistance support athletes."

What happened to Saleh Mohammadi?

Fox News Digital's Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report. 

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