U.S. working to secure release of basketball star detained by Russia


  • World
  • Monday, 07 Mar 2022

FILE PHOTO: Brittney Griner of the United States gestures during a game against Australia at Saitama Super Arena in their Tokyo 2020 Olympic women's basketball quarterfinal game in Saitama, Japan August 4, 2021. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Diplomats were working to ensure the release of seven-time WNBA All-Star player Brittney Griner after Russia said it had detained the player last month for possession of vape cartridges containing hash oil, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday.

The Russian Customs Service, without naming Griner, said on Saturday that it had detained an athlete in February after the player arrived at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on a flight from New York.

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