Tearful Brittney Griner is overcome with emotion as she receives her third gold with Team USA two years after WNBA star left Russia in prisoner swap

Brittney Griner’s third Olympic gold medal was clearly the most important for the American leading scorer.

After the dramatic 67-66 victory over Team France in the final of the women’s basketball tournament at the Olympic Games in Paris, the 33-year-old was overcome with emotion and began to cry on stage.

Griner was competing in the Olympics for the first time since being released from a Russian penal colony two years earlier following a controversial prisoner exchange.

Plus, the attorney who advocates for other wrongfully imprisoned Americans is celebrating victory after another prisoner swap between the U.S. and Russia, this time securing the safe return of former Marine Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

Admittedly, Griner didn’t know if she would ever get this chance again.

“This one meant a lot to me,” Griner said after winning an eighth straight gold medal in women’s basketball. “I mean, just getting the chance to play for gold, to represent my country, what my country has done for me? Yeah, this is the pinnacle of the pinnacle.”

American gold medalist Brittney Griner begins to cry on stage during the national anthem

Brittney Griner from the United States kisses his wife Cherelle after winning the gold medal match

This gold medal was the culmination of a long road back for Griner, who two years ago was still in a Russian penal colony and was unsure if she would ever return home, let alone play basketball or compete in the third Olympic Games to be held in Europe, so close to Russia.

She was sentenced to nine years in prison for drug possession and trafficking in Russia. She spent 10 months in prison before taking part in a high-profile prisoner swap in December 2022 for arms dealer Viktor Bout. Griner, a center for the Phoenix Mercury who was playing basketball in Russia during the WNBA season when she was detained, said she would never play internationally again, except for USA Basketball.

After scoring four points in five minutes on Sunday, Griner claimed her third gold medal in the game for the U.S. She plans to emulate her newborn son Bash this time around.

“It’s been a long journey, a tough journey to get back into it,” the 33-year-old said. “I’m just glad my body held up and I can be here.”

Griner has learned to appreciate the little things at the Olympics more than she did the first two times she competed, in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro and in 2021 in Tokyo. In 2021, Griner led the U.S. with 30 points, the most ever scored by an American player in a gold medal game.

It’s been three years since then, but Griner’s ordeals in Russia have made her appreciate the mundane details of life more.

“Waking up, going to practice, even if you don’t want to practice, having the opportunity to do that, because we overlook it,” she said. “That’s the opportunity that we get to do and I’m just cherishing every second that I can right now.”

During these Games, the U.S. conducted another high-profile prisoner exchange just hours before Griner took the field in pool play. Knowing more Americans were coming home, she was “absolutely thrilled” to have them back.

Teammate Diana Taurasi, who helped lobby for Griner’s return while incarcerated, pulled two of Griner’s teammates off during the medal ceremony and the national anthem. Taurasi said she could feel Griner’s emotions and called it almost “mind-blowing” that Griner would come back at this point.

“She’s someone who is grateful for all the support that she’s had through all of this,” Taurasi said. “And it wasn’t easy. And it’s still not easy for her. She still carries a lot of burden … to make sure that everybody gets out of it. She really carries that burden heavily on her back.”

WNBA star Brittney Griner in front of Russian court in Moscow, Russia on July 27, 2022

Evan Gershkovich (right) and Paul Whelan (left) followed Griner back to the US from Russia

Viktor Bout has started a political career since his release from an American prison

This photo, taken on November 19, 2022, shows the entrance to the IK-2 penal colony in the city of Yavas in Mordovia, central Russia, where Griner was held.

During the game itself, Griner quickly scored four points and grabbed two rebounds in the win.

She celebrated the victory on the basketball court with lots of hugs, including from Lisa Leslie and others cheering on the Americans at the Bercy Arena, a game that was actually an away game for the US, with French President Emmanuel Macron in the stands.

“The gold medal game is just the icing on the cake, and I haven’t even talked about the Olympics,” Griner said.

Then it was time to celebrate again as the Americans gathered at midfield for photos. Griner grabbed a phone for the team selfie with her right hand and held up her latest gold medal with her left.

This was definitely a moment to remember.