CAS Expected to Decide on Appeal of Olympics Ban on Bulgarian Weightlifters by Jan 31

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has said it expects to rule by the end of next month on Bulgaria's appeal against a ban on its weightlifting team for the 2016 Olympics, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

"The CAS is expected to issue its decision by the end of January 2016," the Swiss-based court has said in a statement, according to Reuters. "Until then, the qualifications for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will not become final."

Earlier this month, the Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation (BWF) appealed the Olympics ban on its weightlifters imposed by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) over a string of doping cases.

The lawyer of Bulgaria’s weightlifting federation has said that he believes the Lausanne, Switzerland-headquartered CAS will overturn the ban in time for Bulgarian weightlifters to take part in the 2016 Olympics.

Eight men and three women Bulgarian athletes, who were preparing for the April 9-18 European championship in Tbilisi, Georgia, had tested positive for stanozolol, an anabolic steroid banned for use in competitions by many international sports bodies.