Women’s weightlifting team coach fired after doping scandal

YEREVAN, APRIL 3, ARMENPRESS. Artashes Nersisyan, head coach of the Armenian women’s weightlifting team, weightlifter Sona Poghosyan’s personal coach Arman Ghazaryan have been fired, the Armenian national Olympic committee ruled at a recent session.

The issue has even escalated to a degree where the committee is discussing whether to ban Nersisyan and Ghazaryan from sports.

Back in 2013 the NOC decided to heighten control against performance-enhancement users. But since 2013, none of the doping tests came back positively until a recent case.

The National Olympic Committee and the ministry of sports and youth affairs haven’t yet issued official statements.

Weightlifter Sona Poghosyan, a participant of the 31st Summer Olympics, tested positive for performance enhancing substances, the International Weightlifting Federation said.

The U20 European Champion tested positively for S 2. She was temporarily banned from international tournaments.

English –translator/editor: Stepan Kocharyan