CAS ruling limits room for 'legal manoeuvring' to defend Russian athletes - Kremlin

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia had limited time for "legal manoeuvring" to defend the rights of its athletes after a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Thursday.

(Reuters)

"Certainly, the court decision was unpleasant and bad news," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with journalists.

"To our regret, that decision falls on the eve of the Olympics, so of course legal manoeuvring to continue defending the rights of our sportspeople is pretty limited in time now."

CAS, sport's highest tribunal, rejected on Thursday Russia's appeal against a doping ban for its entire athletics team from the Rio Olympics.

(Reporting by Dmitry Solovyov; Editing by Alexander Winning)