Brittney wrote memoir while she was in Russian detainment

Detained player Evan Griner in Russia after a recent drug-smuggling trial and an apology to his Russian counterpart Evan Gershkovich

The 30-year-old gold medal winner spent nearly 300 days in Russian custody after being arrested and sentenced to nine years in prison for drug-smuggling after authorities found cannabis oil in her luggage. Griner, who the US State Department deemed wrongfully detained, was released last December in a prisoner swap that involved Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

A WNBA All-Star with the Phoenix Mercury, Griner had flown to Moscow in February 2022 to rejoin UMMC Ekaterinburg, a Russian women’s team she has played for in the off-season since 2014.

According to a statement released by Alfred A. Knopf, the beginning of an “unfathomable period in my life” happened in February.

“That day was the beginning of an unfathomable period in my life which only now am I ready to share,” she said in the news release. “The primary reason I traveled back to Russia for work that day was because I wanted to make my wife, family, and teammates proud.”

The book announcement comes after Russian authorities last month detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who the US State Department deemed wrongfully detained on Monday. Russian authorities have been holding Paul Whelan for the past year and a half.

The salaries of players in the US’s professional league have been spotlighted, as it has allowed athletes to go overseas to earn more.

A Conversation with Alfred A. Knopf about Her Wrongful Detention and Growing Up in the U.S., a Conversation with Jennifer Griner

Knopf stated that the book would be “intimate and moving,” and that it would reveal her harrowing experience of her wrongful imprisonment as well as the difficulty of navigating the Russian legal system.

Griner, 32, is a 6-foot-9 two-time Olympic gold medalist, three-time All-American at Baylor University, a prominent advocate for pay equity for women athletes and the first openly gay athlete to reach an endorsement deal with Nike. She is the author of one previous book, “In My Skin: My Life On and Off the Basketball Court,” published in 2014.

“After an incredibly challenging 10 months in detainment, I am grateful to have been rescued and to be home. Readers will hear my story and comprehend why I am so grateful for everything people have done for me, said a news release Tuesday from publisher Alfred A. Knopf.