PARIS — Brittany Griner admits there were days when she couldn’t muster enough energy to believe she would ever get out of a Russian prison.
The moment I stepped out in my Team USA uniform ahead of Olympic team practice on Saturday was beyond imagination.
Greiner was detained at Moscow Airport on February 17, 2022, with a small amount of hash oil. She had intended to go abroad and play professional baseball at home. Instead, she became a political touchstone, and was eventually sentenced to nine years in a gloomy prison for “drug smuggling.”
Hope? Hope for an early release? Hope for freedom?
Hope was lacking.
Hope is a “dangerous thing,” Greiner said. “At some point, you just have to accept it. There were moments when I thought, ‘This is it.'”
The State Department deemed her “unlawfully detained,” and in December 2022 the federal government arranged a prisoner swap for a Russian arms dealer sentenced to 10 years in prison in the United States.
This earned Greiner his freedom, but also brought him further criticism from some Americans who did not approve of the deal for prisoners, whom he called “merchants of death.”
Now, she is back in France, representing a country with mixed opinions about her after boarding her first international flight since returning from Russia. This is her third Olympics, but this one is different in many ways, and not just because her wife and young son are back home. Memories of Russia always come to mind.
“It’s always with me,” Greiner said Saturday. “There’s definitely a moment where you think, ‘Wow, this could be completely different. I could be looking at this beautiful view through the bars.’ It doesn’t go away. It makes you appreciate everything a little bit more.”
Greiner grew up in Texas in a military family. Playing for the United States was always her ultimate goal, and it was better than winning the 2012 NCAA Championship at Baylor or the 2014 WNBA title at Phoenix. She won gold medals in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021.
“It’s always been everything to me,” Greiner said. “My dad was a Marine in 1968-69. For us, representing my country means everything to him and to me. Before I played basketball, I actually wanted to be in the military. Now, [the Team USA jersey] “Once again, I am honored to be chosen among so many incredible women and thrilled to be here for a third time.”
Greiner has a reputation as a kind, quiet person, a far cry from her on-court play, where teammate Diana Taurasi describes her as “an intimidating, dominant force.” At the Olympics, she is the center of attention, repeatedly greeted and congratulated by other U.S. Olympians during Friday’s opening ceremony.
“Athletes who came to me after hearing my story [saying] “They prayed for me,” she said. “It really meant a lot.”
She never expected it. She never wanted it. But just being here inspired her team.
“What BG has been through over the last few years is definitely unprecedented,” Taurasi said. “For her to be able to wear this uniform again and be here for Opening Night last night… I know she’s grateful and thankful.”
“It’s incredible, considering how deeply painful it was for her personally,” said U.S. coach Cheryl Reeve. “The feelings we had for her personally. The despair. The loss of hope. What she went through. For her to be able to play these games and return to the Olympics is incredible. I often think about how hard it must have been.”
Greiner said she will be emotional about the contrast between representing the United States in a Russian prison and the experience she has had. She said she is focused on helping the U.S. win its eighth straight gold medal.
“I’m trying to tell myself that we don’t have time. [emotions, in order] “You have to be locked in,” she said. “But there will be emotions here and there. There will be emotions everywhere. But because it’s the Olympics, I think there will be a lot of emotions for everyone.”
There were days when she didn’t even dream of going out, when it was too hard, too overwhelming, too impossible. Just dreaming about it was too painful for her to bear.
“So when that day came, it was sweeter,” she said. “… I appreciate everything more now. Feeling the connection, seeing all the people, seeing the sights.
“I’m grateful because it can make all the difference.”
