Opposition growing to CAS-ordered Russia ice hockey reinstatement

Ice hockey's world governing body says the impact of a court decision forcing it to reinstate Russia has been "significantly underestimated." Several leading nations say they won't play against Russian teams.

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) said in a statement on Wednesday that the impact of last week's Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) decision requiring it to reinstate Russia to international play had been "significantly underestimated." It added that it "maintains" its disagreement with the decision and that it remained "in dialogue with Member National Associations, organizing committees, host authorities and other key stakeholders to determine the best way forward." The statement comes after two days of talks by the IIHF Council aimed at charting a way forward following Friday's CAS decision, which appears to have caught most of the international ice hockey community off guard.