Brittney Griner has met with a US official for the first time since the basketball star was detained in Russia over allegations she attempted to bring cannabis into the country.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price told CNN on Wednesday that an official from the American embassy in Moscow had met with Griner, who has won two Olympic gold medals with Team USA.
“We were able to check on her condition, we will continue to work very closely with her legal team, with her broader network, to see to it that she is treated fairly,” Price said. “Our official found Brittney Griner to be in good condition and we will continue to do everything we can to see to that it she is treated fairly throughout this ordeal.”
Without identifying Griner, the Federal Customs Service of Russia said earlier this month that a player had been detained in February after arriving at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport on a flight from New York.
The 31-year-old WNBA star faces up to 10 years in prison if found guilty of bringing drugs into Russia. Griner’s arrest comes as the US places sanctions on Russia after Vladimir Putin ordered his forces to invade Ukraine last month. Some have expressed fears Griner could be used as a bargaining chip with the US as tensions over the war in Ukraine rise.
Russian news agency TASS reported that Griner’s detention had been extended until 19 May in a hearing last week.
A person close to the situation confirmed to the Guardian that last week’s hearing was solely about Griner’s legal team challenging her detention, and not on the merits of the case, with the hope of getting her transferred to house arrest. The court’s denial of that appeal was not unexpected, the person said.
The investigation is still ongoing and a trial date will be set once it has concluded. Until then, the court extends detention by periods of time. If the investigation is not finished by the May hearing, the court will then contemplate how much longer the court needs to extend. The source also confirmed that Griner is “OK” and her Russian legal team has seen her multiple times a week over the entire course of her detention.
Griner, like many of her fellow WNBA players, competes in Russia during the league’s offseason. She has played for UMMC Ekaterinburg since 2015, helping the Russian club to three domestic titles and EuroLeague Women championships in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2021. Her annual salary of $1m with Ekaterinburg is far in excess of her earnings in the WNBA, where the maximum salary is $228,000.
Griner is considered one of the best players in the world. She won gold medals with Team USA at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics, the WNBA title with the Phoenix Mercury in 2014 and has been named an WNBA All-Star seven times.
