Russia

Brittney Griner Says National Anthem “Hits Different” In Her First WNBA Game

Griner recently played her first pre-season game with Phoenix Mercury after spending almost 10 months in a Russian prison.
05/16/2023

Brittney Griner Asks Her Supporters To Write Letters To Paul Whelan

The former Marine is being held in Russia on espionage charges.
12/22/2022

Ukraine-Russia Prisoner Swap Frees U.S. Air Force Veteran Suedi Murekezi

The Rwandan immigrant who fled genocide said he was tortured for two weeks while in Russian-held territory.
12/15/2022

Brittney Griner Said ‘I Want To Talk’ During Long Voyage Home From Russia

The WNBA star didn’t want quiet time after being detained for 294 days.
12/11/2022

WNBA Commissioner Speaks Out On Players Choosing to Play Abroad

Admitting that a number of women basketball players play abroad to supplement their income, Cathy Engelbert promises their safety is a WNBA concern.
12/09/2022

Brittney Griner Timeline: From Russian Prison To Freedom

The WNBA superstar is finally released after nearly ten months in captivity but lived through a nightmarish ordeal.
12/08/2022

‘The Merchant of Death’ -- Who is Viktor Bout, the Russian Arms Dealer Exchanged for Brittney Griner?

Bout’s exploits saw him dealing arms sometimes to both forces in the same conflict.
12/08/2022
TOPSHOT - US WNBA basketball superstar Brittney Griner sits inside a defendants' cage during a hearing at the Khimki Court in the town of Khimki outside Moscow on July 15, 2022.

President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Rev. Al Sharpton, And Others React To News Of Brittney Griner’s Release From Russian Prison

The WNBA star is finally on her way home just in time for the holidays.
12/08/2022
US Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, sits inside a defendants' cage after the court's verdict during a hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. - A Russian court found Griner guilty of smuggling and storing narcotics after prosecutors requested a sentence of nine and a half years in jail for the athlete

Brittney Griner Finally Released From Russian Prison After Nearly 10 Months

President Joe Biden approved a prisoner swap between Griner and international arms dealer Viktor Bout.
12/08/2022

Hope Remains For Brittney Griner’s Return Through Potential Prisoner Trade

Russian minister says the hopes of a prisoner exchange in 2022 aren’t impossible, however the WNBA star still faces a grueling sentence.
11/30/2022

Brittney Griner Moved to Russian Penal Colony in Mordovia

The U.S. Olympian and basketball star was moved to a location known to house other American prisoners held in the former Soviet republic.
11/18/2022