WNBA player Brittney Griner, who plays for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, has played in Russia for the last seven years in the winter, earning over $1 million per season — more than quadruple her WNBA salary. She last played for her Russian team UMMC Ekaterinburg on Jan. 29 before the league took a two-week break in early February for the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournaments. The 31-year-old Griner has won two Olympic gold medals with the U.S., a WNBA championship with the Mercury and a national championship at Baylor. She is a seven-time All-Star. Griner’s arrest was first reported over the weekend by The New York Times. She was arrested at a Moscow airport after Russian authorities said a search of her luggage revealed she had vape cartridges, which were said to contain oil derived from cannabis. Griner could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted

Public Service Announcement.
DO NOT TRAVEL to authoritarian countries ✈
You should KNOW what countries do not honor WESTERN COUNTRIES humanitarian rules. 🇺🇸 🌍
They USE people as POLITICAL PAWNS to be traded.
DIFFICULT for America to GET YOU OUT.#BrittneyGriner#Ukraine#Russia

— Jennifer Coleman (@jenniferclmn) March 8, 2022

Former #Baylor star and #WNBA great #BrittneyGriner continues to be detained in Russia. The United States and the WNBA are speaking out.

Details on where the situation is now. ⬇️

It's part of our continuing coverage on https://t.co/l67WvckmsK pic.twitter.com/ucOU1sxkNy

— Sports2Nite (@Sports2NiteTX) March 8, 2022

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States is working to free Americans in Russian custody, and he urged other Americans in Russia to leave the country. The LGBTQ community in Russia says that it is often harassed and discriminated against by the country’s government. Last month, the Russian Ministry of Justice tried to shut down one of the country’s most active and prominent gay rights groups, the Russian LGBT Network.

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee demands Russia release Brittney Griner: 'No right'https://t.co/JedU8ZSxhs

Is Sheila Lee an idiot? Does she not understand that when a person visits a foreign country they need to educate themselves and follow the laws of that country?

— BigJilm (@NormJim) March 6, 2022

TREMG news brittney griner Sports Ukraine-Russia war WNBA