Brittney Griner reflected on the moment that she learned the US had secured her freedom from Russian detention. In a newly released special edition of 20/20, the WNBA star voiced her support for Americans wrongfully detained abroad, stating that they should be brought home, too.
“I saw that paper and I was so thrilled,” she told Good Morning America coanchor Robin Roberts. She recalled receiving a note that let her know she was being released. “It said: ‘be ready to leave,’” Brittney shared.
Brittney was released on December 8, 2022, after US officials made a deal to swap her for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. He was captured in Thailand in 2008, ending a nearly decade-long hunt by the US. “Being traded for a person known as ‘the merchant of death,’ there were some Americans who thought that wasn't a fair trade,” the GMA host shared. “That this was a heinous criminal and to be traded when it should have been, perhaps, somebody else. What do you say to those who felt it wasn't a balanced trade?”
“If it was left up to me in that trade, I would have went and got Paul and brought him home,” the WNBA star said, referencing Paul Whelan, a former US Marine charged with espionage in Russia where he's been detained since December 2018, serving a 16-year prison sentence.
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“But any time that we can bring home an American, that is a win for Americans," Brittney added. "No one should be left behind." Since being released, she's become an advocate for Americans wrongfully detained abroad, including Paul and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in Russia in March 2023 and charged with espionage.
