Graz, Austria ? Officials in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s hometown of Graz quietly and under cover of darkness removed giant metal letters spelling out his name on a soccer stadium.

The California governor had asked for his name to be stricken from the 15,300-seat arena after critics in his birthplace, where opposition to capital punishment runs high, scorned him for refusing to block this month’s execution of convicted killer Stanley Tookie Williams.

Late Sunday night or early Monday, authorities in the southern Austrian city unbolted the 20 letters spelling out the action star-turned-politician’s name from Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium.

Capital punishment is illegal in Austria, where many people consider it barbaric.

After Williams’ Dec. 13 execution triggered a firestorm in Europe and reignited calls for Graz’s stadium to be stripped of Schwarzenegger’s name, the governor opted for a pre-emptive strike: A week ago, he dashed off a letter to local officials ordering his name to be removed and said he was returning an ornate ring of honor that Graz officials gave him in 1999.