Brittney Griner is ready to open up about her harrowing time spent in captivity inside a Russian penal colony.
The 32-year-old, 8x WNBA All-Star has inked a deal with publisher Alfred A. Knopf to write a still-untitled memoir which they say will take a deep dive into Griner’s nearly one-year stay in a Moscow-area penal colony.
“For the first time Griner recounts the tumultuous events of 2022 that both reshaped her life and captured the world’s attention: Griner’s arrest at the Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow on February 17, followed by her detention, trial, and imprisonment in Russia,” Knopf says about the book, slated to be released mid-next year.
Of course, Griner, arrested and charged for bringing vape cartridges into the country, was ultimately found guilty on the drug charge, and sentenced to 9 years behind bars. But, after months of negotiation, the U.S. agreed to a prisoner exchange, sending back notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout for BG’s release.
Knopf, publisher behind Andre Agassi‘s bio, Open, says Griner will discuss everything from being arrested to going on trial “in vivid detail.” She will also write about her “surreal time living in a foreign prison and the terrifying aspects of day-to-day life in a women’s penal colony.”
“I arrived in Moscow to rejoin the UMMC Ekaterinburg basketball team and was immediately detained at the airport. That day was the beginning of an unfathomable period in my life which only now am I ready to share,” Griner says of the project.
Brittney continued … “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 understand why I’m so thankful for the outpouring of support from people across the world.”
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In addition to the memoir, which will mark the first time Griner has talked about her harrowing experience in-depth, there will be a companion children’s book released in the future.
Since December, Griner’s been acclimating back to life at home … the WNBA champ recently signed a deal with her old squad, the Phoenix Mercury. The new season starts next month, and Brittney will take the floor for the first time since 2021.
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