Staviski jailed over drunk-driving death

SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgarian former world ice dance champion Maxim Staviski was sentenced to 2-1/2 years in prison after a drunk-driving crash that killed a man and left a young woman in coma, an appeals court decided on Monday.

A year ago, Staviski, 31, was given a suspended 2-1/2 year jail sentence but prosecutors appealed saying there were no mitigating circumstances.

Russian-born Staviski was charged in 2007 over the death of the 24-year-old amateur boxer Petar Petrov. He was over the alcohol limit when his Jeep collided with two other vehicles near the Black Sea town of Primorsko.

Staviski, one of the most popular athletes in Bulgaria, and his partner Albena Denkova claimed the Balkan country's first world title in Calgary in 2006 before successfully defending the crown the following year.

National radio quoted Staviski's lawyer as saying the court's verdict was "unfair" and his client would appeal.

(Reporting by Angel Krasimirov; Editing by Sonia Oxley)