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.
The primary reason I traveled back to Russia for work that day was because I wanted to make my wife, family, and teammates proud. 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.
By writing this book, I also hope to raise awareness surrounding other Americans wrongfully detained abroad such as Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Emad Shargi, Airan Berry, Shahab Dalili, Luke Denman, Eyvin Hernandez, Majd Kamalmaz, Jerrel Kenemore, Kai Li, Siamak Namazi, Austin Tice, Mark Swidan and Morad Tahbaz.
Brittney Griner’s unnamed autobiography will be released by Alfred A. Knopf in the spring of 2024. Reagan Arthur, Knopf’s EVP and Publisher, finalized the deal, and Kimberly Witherspoon of Inkwell Management, Jon Liebman of Brillstein Entertainment, and Lindsay Kagawa Colas of Wasserman sold the international rights.
Griner’s arrest at the Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow on February 17, her detention, trial, and imprisonment in Russia, as well as the efforts made in front of the public and behind the scenes at the highest levels of government to bring her home, are all described in this book for the first time. The origins of the global #WeAreBG campaign are also covered in Griner’s autobiography, as well as the problem of pay parity for female athletes in the US. It was this inequity that inspired Griner to play basketball in Russia for seven seasons before returning for an eighth on that fateful February day.
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