The case of Brittney Griner, unjustly imprisoned in Russia, on 7 questions

Who is Brittney Griner?

The 31 -year -old American center is one of the biggest stars in the WNBA, the top women’s basketball league in the world, and perhaps its most recognizable player. At 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in), he is one of the tallest basketball players in history and a fear under the basket.

She was one of the first, if not the first, viral phenomenon in women’s basketball when, in 2009, her dunks circled the world when she was still in high school. Then, after a haloed stint at Baylor University, which won the national title in 2012, he was first selected overall in the 2013 WNBA Draft by Phoenix Mercury.

Since then, awards have piled up: two-time Olympic gold medalist as starting center for America’s superpowered team, seven-time WNBA star player, eight-time block leader, two-time defensive player, 2014 and 2015, and champion in 2014 with Mercury, the only team where he played in the WNBA.

Last year, Griner finished 2nd in voting for the league’s most important player behind Jonquel Jones.

Why is he imprisoned in Russia?

On February 17, a week before Russia invaded Ukraine, Brittney Griner was arrested at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow for drug possession as she attempted to leave the country at the height of her other club, UMMC Yekaterinburg. Russian League activities did not end until April, but for weeks American authorities warned their citizens not to travel to Russia.

According to Russian customs officials, Griner was with him when he passed airport security vape cartridges containing cannabis oil. Just three weeks after his arrest, on March 5, the news of his arrest became public, as revealed by New York Times.

On the same day, Russian authorities released a surveillance video on the social network Telegram showing a woman relatively easily identifiable as Brittney Griner, due to her rare build and unique style, passing through airport security. Then, after a cut, the opening of a suitcase and the discovery of a package.

If convicted by a Russian court, Brittney Griner could face a prison sentence of up to 10 years. Once his arrest was announced, some expressed their fear that he would be treated unfairly in a country where the rights of members of the LGBTQ+ community are regularly violated, he who has openly been homosexual since end of his career. academic, double married and activist. (He was also the first openly gay athlete to represent Nike).

His trial is scheduled for mid-June and his detention was extended by a month until that date last week after a brief time before a Russian judge. She was then seen handcuffed, her head bowed and covered by the hood of her tracksuit, leaving only her thick braid falling in front of her face.

Why do we hear more about his case three months into his incarceration?

For more than two months, from his arrest in February to the beginning of May, his case was being handled. in public of US authorities as common business. The U.S. State Department has claimed to offer consular services to Griner, while being careful not to make it a political affair due to the hardening of diplomatic relations between the two powers against the backdrop of the crisis in Ukraine.

But the tone changed on May 3 when the U.S. State Department announced it was came to the conclusion that the Russian Federation was unfairly detaining US national Brittney Griner. With the same breath, his file was passed into the hands of Roger Carstens, President Joe Biden’s special envoy responsible for the release of American captives abroad.

This announcement came three days before the WNBA season began. Calls by players for his release have begun since his arrest was announced, but have only intensified since they returned to the game.

Why do American WNBA players also play in Russia?

Unlike the men’s professional leagues, the WNBA schedule is somewhat restricted. Thirty or more games of the season typically run from the beginning of May to August, followed by a month of playoffs ending with the arrival of autumn.

Salaries are rising, but remain a fraction of the totals collected by NBA multimillionaires. WNBA stars can expect a maximum salary of US $ 228,000, while the minimum contract is $ 72,000 for a veteran (and $ 60,000 for a rookie).

As a result, most of the 144 WNBA players are looking for overseas careers, scattered in winter leagues in Europe, Australia, but also in South Korea, Japan and China.

As WNBA stars, they are particularly attractive in these different markets and, especially in the case of the Russian League where Brittney Griner has been playing in the winter since 2014, they can get higher that salary than they get in the United States. in the summer.

Reported salaries are only estimates, but it is generally accepted that a WNBA star like Griner can earn between $ 500,000 and $ 1 million per season in Russia. Her Phoenix Mercury teammate, the great Diana Taurasi, was notoriously excluded from the 2015 WNBA season after UMMC Yekaterinburg offered her $ 1.5 million for her exclusive that year, making sure she was fresh and ready for recovery in the fall, even if the two do not overlap the seasons.

What is the WNBA doing to support Brittney Griner?

The league announced at the start of the season that on the field each of its 12 teams will place a giant decal with the mention of BG42, i.e., its initials and numbers. Brittney Griner’s story is regularly told on various game broadcasts, some of which are in the powerful ABC/ESPN consortium.

Although Griner cannot join his team at this time, the WNBA allowed Mercury to continue paying him his salary while enjoying payroll relief (hard cap in the league) that allows Phoenix to get a replacement. player without him having to be removed. contract.

League players, teammates and opponents, as well as coaches, managers and managers did not miss the opportunity to talk to him and ask for his return, either at a press briefing or on social networks . The hashtags #WeAreBG and #FreeBrittneyGriner lasted. It’s been two weeks, but the message continues to be delivered with the same force, every day.

The WNBA Women’s Players Association also officially joined a petition last weekend asking the U.S. government to step up efforts for her release launched on the change.org platform. (New window) on March 5 by journalist Tamryn Spruill. The petition has now garnered more than 140,000 signatures, up 20,000 a week.

And the NBA?

When asked about Brittney Griner in the NBA draft lottery on Tuesday night, commissioner Adam Silver said he was working side by side with WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert to ensure his release. Silver notably recounted that he did not have a strong stance in the early part of his incarceration at the suggestion of the concerned authorities.

NBA support is important. The league has a deeper entrance to the American state apparatus, thanks to its lobbyists and its owners. The relationship between the NBA and the WNBA is more fraternal: 30 NBA teams own 50% of the WNBA, while 12 WNBA teams own the other half.

Do we expect him to be released at the end of the WNBA season?

If Brittney Griner is indeed sentenced to prison as expected at the end of her trial currently scheduled for mid-June, U.S. authorities could still obtain her release thanks to the exchange of prisoners. These diplomatic negotiations may take some time, but despite the current political climate, such an exchange is possible.

Two other Americans were in his situation in Russia a few weeks ago, but the Biden administration only obtained the release on April 27 of Trevor Reed, a former marine who was arrested in 2019 and sentenced (unfair according to the State Department). ) of nine. years in prison for assaulting a police officer who drove him to a police station after a drunken night. In return, the Russians obtained the release of a drug trafficker, Konstantin Yaroshenko, who was arrested in 2010 in Liberia.

Griner’s wife, Cherelle, also reacted on Instagram to Trevor Reed’s release: As I do all I can to bring BG home, joy fills my heart for the Reed family. I don’t know them personally, but I know the pain of a loved one being imprisoned in another country. This disease is constant and can only be cured by safe homecoming. For the Reed family, that day is now.

Paul Whelan, who was arrested in 2018 in Moscow when he attended the wedding of a friend who was sentenced to 16 years in prison for spying, is another American unjustly imprisoned in Russia according to the State Department.

Like Brittney Griner, she hopes for a favorable change, as the Russians are particularly keen to free arms trafficker Viktor Bout, the merchant of death arrested in 2008 in Thailand and sentenced to 25 years in prison. His name is already spinning as a possible bargaining chip for Trevor Reed.

This week, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the Biden administration’s top diplomat, spoke with Cherelle Griner, assuring her that the file was in her full attention and U.S. diplomacy was working day and night. in his case.

But no one is saying that the United States would be willing to make a new exchange to get the release of Griner or Whelan, or even their joint release, if it was a Viktor Bout question.

Sometimes the price of an exchange is too great to pay. A fact that the world of sports knows very well, but in circumstances it is less remarkable.