The body was covered with a blue tarp after being pulled from the canal near the Laurier Bridge.The body was covered with a blue tarp after being pulled from the canal near the Laurier Bridge. (CBC)

The body of a man was found floating in the Rideau Canal in downtown Ottawa on Friday morning, but police have ruled out foul play as the cause of his death.

A passerby spotted the body in the water on the east side of the canal, toward Colonel By Drive near the Laurier Street bridge, at around 5:40 a.m., Ottawa police reported.

An autopsy conducted Friday afternoon was inconclusive, but allowed investigators to confirm the death is not suspicious, Ottawa police said.

Police have also now identified the body but are not releasing the man's identity.

Earlier, they said the body appeared to have been in the water for some time.