After the official Twitter account of the Olympics tweeted praise for an Iranian marksman who won the gold medal in the air pistol men’s final, they were blasted by various Iranians who claimed that the marksman, Javad Foroughi, is a member of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has been designated by the United States as a terrorist organization.
“Golden debut! Javad Foroughi wins gold in the air pistol men’s final, breaking the Olympic Record on his first Olympic appearance. Well done!” the Olympics Twitter site gushed.
Golden debut! 🥇
Javad Foroughi wins gold in the air pistol men's final, breaking the Olympic Record on his first Olympic appearance. Well done!@ISSF_Shooting #Shooting pic.twitter.com/oLESupTNL1
— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) July 24, 2021
But the Iranian human rights athletic organization United for Navid, named after champion Greco-Roman wrestler Navid Afkari, “who was imprisoned and tortured by the Islamic Republic of Iran for his participation against the theocratic regime in 2018,” as The Jerusalem Post reported, blasted the Olympics in a statement to the Post, writing that it “considers the awarding of an Olympic Gold Medal to Iran marksman Javad Foroughi not only a catastrophe for Iranian sports but also for the international community, and especially the reputation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The 41-year old Foroughi is a current and longtime member of a terrorist organization [IRGC].”
The organization told the Post that it had written “to the IOC earlier this year and warned them about the possible presence of the military and even politicians serving as athletic representatives of Iran. Officials of the IOC never took any action. Awarding an Olympic gold medal to a member of a terrorist organization is an insult to other athletes and a black mark on the IOC. United for Navid calls for an immediate investigation by the IOC, and until an investigation is completed the suspension of any medal award.”
American journalist Masih Alinejad, who hails from Iran, has spoken out vehemently against the Iranian regime and was the target of a kidnapping plot from four Iranian men allegedly connected with the Iranian theocratic regime, tweeted, “U.S. names #IRGC a terrorist group. #JavadForoughi a member of IRGC was allowed to take part in Tokyo Olympic & win gold in men’s 10m air pistol. He dedicated his gold to Ali Khameni the leader of IRI. Sport being used to normalize dictatorship. An affront to the Olympic ideals!”
U.S. names #IRGC a terrorist group. #JavadForoughi a member of IRGC was allowed to take part in Tokyo Olympic & win gold in men's 10m air pistol. He dedicated his gold to Ali Khamenei the leader of IRI. Sport being used to normalize dictatorship. An affront to the Olympic ideals! pic.twitter.com/6ZYAu0YrRC
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) July 24, 2021
Ellie Cohanim, the former U.S. deputy special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism, tweeted: “What a disgrace for the Olympics. This guy has been outed as a member of the IRGC a designated terrorist organization.”
What a disgrace for the @Olympics this guy has been outed as a member of the #IRGC a US designated terrorist organization. #Iran https://t.co/43VDWIp3MX
— Ellie Cohanim (@elliecohanim) July 24, 2021
In August 2017, former President Donald Trump signed the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which targets Iran, North Korea, and Russia,
The law required the president to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist group, the first time the U.S. had designated the military branch of a foreign country in this manner. The law’s Sec. 105 (3) states, “The IRGC, not just the IRGC-QF [the Qods Force, the Guard’s extraterritorial branch], is responsible for implementing Iran’s international program of destabilizing activities, support for acts of international terrorism, and ballistic missile program.”