The Latest Breaking News from Brittney Griner

Washington (AFP) - American basketball star Brittney Griner was headed home on Thursday after being freed from a Russian prison in a swap for Viktor Bout, the notorious arms dealer known as the "Merchant of Death." 

“I am so happy to hear of the news of BG’s return home. I know I can speak for the entire Sky organization when I say words can’t express the happiness that we feel to finally have her coming home,” coach/GM James Wade said.

There are still numerous questions around the WNBA star’s detainment and the deal that brought her home, but for now there is relief.

Stars of the sporting world led celebrations of Brittney Griner’s release on social media

U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner was released on Thursday in a prisoner swap with Russia after the two-time Olympic champion and player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)spent more than nine months detained on a drug possession offense. Here are some of the key moments in her ordeal:

The WNBA star is on a plane from Russia, with a new cause to fight for.

The brother of an American detained in Russia for nearly four years says the Biden administration “made the right decision” to agree to a prisoner exchange that freed WNBA star Brittney Griner

Moscow (AFP) - Former Soviet air force pilot Viktor Bout, who was swapped for US basketball star Brittney Griner on Thursday, fuelled some of the world's bloodiest conflicts by trafficking weapons across several continents.

The basketball star was first detained in February, and had recently been moved to a Russian penal colony

Brittney Griner’s release from a Russian jail was welcomed by her fellow athletes on Thursday morning

Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, swapped for WNBA star Brittney Griner, is widely known outside the country as the “Merchant of Death” who fueled some of the world’s worst conflicts