Brittney Griner was among the WNBA players who spoke out about the national anthem during the summer of 2020 amid racial unrest following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
Griner said in 2020 that the WNBA should not play the national anthem, adding that the league “should take a stand there. She even walked off the court before the anthem was played before a game that season.
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Gold medallists Alyssa Thomas and Brittney Griner stand on the podium along with bronze medallist Jade Melbourne of Australia. (Reuters/Evelyn Hochstein)
But since then, Griner’s life has been eventful: He was arrested on drug charges in February 2022 and jailed in Russia for nearly 10 months. The US and Russia agreed to a prisoner swap, and the ordeal appears to have changed Griner’s stance on what “The Stars and Stripes” means to Russia.
After the U.S. women’s basketball team defeated France at the Paris Olympics, Griner was seen holding her gold medal around her neck and crying as the national anthem played.
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Gold medalist Brittney Griner holds the American flag. (Reuters/Evelyn Hochstein)
“I never thought I’d be here,” she said of the 2024 Paris Olympics, via Reuters, “and to be here and win a gold medal for my country, symbolizing how hard my country has fought for me to be here. This gold medal will hold a special place among the other two medals I’ve been fortunate enough to win.”
A’ja Wilson called Griner a “warrior” as she spoke about her time with Team USA, more than two years after the Phoenix Mercury center was arrested overseas.
U.S. head coach Cherry Reeve added that she is “grateful” to have Griner as part of the U.S. team.
Gold medalist Brittney Griner sheds tears during the national anthem. (Reuters/Brian Snyder)
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“She was so grateful to be here… I think we should all be keeping an eye on her because what she’s been through is immeasurable,” Reeve said.
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