Other key concerns were whether players had been provided with enough time to return to competition fitness and whether, in the case of injury, they would have access to the usual range of treatment and rehabilitation, given the strain on health services.
At the height of the pandemic last year, many private healthcare facilities were only able to offer patients limited services, prompting concerns that insurance firms would continue to rake in premiums while customers were left without viable options.
"He has been unjustly targeted by the Iranian authorities who want to make an example out of a popular, high-profile athlete and intimidate others who might dare exercise their human right to participate in a peaceful protest," it said.
"The horrific act of executing an athlete can only be regarded as a repudiation of the humanitarian values that underpin sport," said World Players Association (WPA) director Brendan Schwab in a statement.
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