SOFIA: Bulgarian weightlifters banned over doping violations will not compete at the world championships after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the punishments imposed by the sport’s international governing body (IWF). “CAS confirmed the ITF decision,” the Bulgarian federation, which appealed against the 11 bans hoping that the weightlifters would be allowed to compete at the worlds in the United States in November, said in a statement on Monday. In March, eight male weightlifters, including three European champions, and three female athletes, tested positive for the banned anabolic steroid stanozolol at a training camp for the European championships in Tbilisi, Georgia. Demir Demirev, Ivan Markov and Ivaylo Filev and female weightlifter Milka Maneva were banned for 18 months as they were already suspended for doping. Bulgarian weightlifting has suffered repeated embarrassment due to doping cases and the national body was temporarily stripped of its licence in 2009.