Armenia was among nine countries suspended from weightlifting for a year on Saturday, September 30 in an attempt to combat an epidemic of doping.

The decision by the International Weightlifting Federation followed the re-testing of anti-doping samples from the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.

Countries with at least three doping offences from those Olympics were suspended. The IWF started pursuing the suspensions before last year's Olympics, but the process was held up by legal challenges.

Also suspended were Russia, Chine, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova, Turkey, and Ukraine.