Brittney Griner and her wife Cherelle Griner have been through a lot over the past year.
Brittney Griner and her wife Cherelle Griner are both graduates of Baylor University. You might be thinking that the two had been in a relationship since then, but they haven’t. Rather, Brittney had a former wife, Glory Johnson. In 2016 Brittney and Glory parted their ways and eventually Cherelle entered the picture.
There is no news that Brittney and Cherelle had been dating long before they got engaged in 2018. A year later after the engagement, in 2019, the couple officially tied the knot.
Who Is Brittney Griner’s Wife Cherelle Griner?
Cherelle Watson is a thirty-year-old African-American professional teacher, who is also the wife of WNBA’s Olympic gold medalist.
Her Linkedin profile speaks much about the diverse portfolio and all the achievements that she has under her belt. According to it, Cherelle Griner attended the North Carolina Central University of Law from where she graduated recently in 2022.
You might want to know more about Brittney and Cherelle’s relationship so there is a brief timeline of how they went into a knot-tied relationship and how things look like today.
Their relationship sprouted in 2018, the same year when Brittney made it official on her Instagram. In it, she praised Cherelle for supporting her and being her backbone.
In June 2019, they tied the knot and got married. A year later Cherelle shared a heart-warming post for Brittney on their anniversary. Cherelle expressed how Brittney has taught her to love and be loved and that she played an important role in Cherelle’s life when it comes to understanding life.
Then in June 2021, Brittney took to her Instagram handle and wrote a funny caption emphasizing the fact that they are only two, as of now, and ordered everything in a quantity not more than two.
Things could not have become tragic at their end if Brittney had not been detained in Russia. In February 2022, Cherelle shared a depressing note about her feelings due to the fact the two are thousands of kilometers apart. She wrote how the world seems joyless and how her heart wrenches when every day ends without a bloom of hope.
Cherelle made an appearance at Good Morning America in May 2022 to discuss Brittney’s detention. She put light on the fact that Brittney has celebrated only one thanksgiving in the U.S and the reason behind her going to Russia in every off-season is just one-more pay than WNBA! She wanted the WNBA to realize the need to increase their budget when it comes to a player like Brittney Griner.
What led to Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia?
Brittney Griner is a well-known WNBA star who plays under the Phoenix Mercury. The seven-time WNBA All-Star has much under her belt and has given four gold medals to the U.S, two in the Olympics and two in World Cups.
Brittney Griner was accustomed to playing in Russia during off-seasons, and with the same desire, she went there to play in February 2022. Call it bad timing or what, Brittney was stopped at the Russian Airport and the Russian FSS stopped her as she had illegal possession of cartridges filled with hashish oil. Such a case leads to nine years of detention in a foreign (Russian) jail.
Things would have been a bit easier had the relations between the Russian and U.S governments were not strained due to the Ukraine attack. Initially, all negotiations went in vain until May 15, when Russia and the U.S reached an agreement to swap their prisoners. It was decided that in exchange for Britteny Griner, the U.S will let go of Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer.
In July, Britteny wrote directly to Biden, and the letter was delivered to the White House. Biden reassured her that the U.S government is trying out all possible ways to bring her back home. Later, Cherelle was inquired about the letter sent to Biden directly. She was then told that she was receiving Britteny’s letters and every letter talks about one thing-if Cherelle had made a contact with the U.S administration and unlike what she desired to say, each time she had to tell her she couldn’t. That’s what made Brittney directly contact Biden, as they were out of Cherelle’s reach.
No rallies, interviews, prisoner swaps, or letters could help Brittney Griner as Russia announced her nine-year detention on 4th August 2022.
Fortunately, several months later Russia changed course and released Brittney Griner following a prisoner swap.
