In 2020, Brittney Griner, who had called for the WNBA not to play the national anthem and walked off the court before it, spoke out amid racial unrest following George Floyd’s and Breonna Taylor’s deaths.
After being imprisoned in Russia for nearly 10 months in 2022, her perspective on “The Star-Spangled Banner” shifted. At the Paris Olympics, Griner, wearing a gold medal, was emotional as the anthem played.
“I didn’t think I would be here,” she said of the 2024 Paris Olympics, via Reuters. “And then to be here and winning gold for my country, representing when my country fought for me so hard even to be standing here. This gold medal is going to hold a special place among the other two I was fortunate to win.”
‘FOR MY COUNTRY’: Brittney Griner once walked off the court before the national anthem. But after being imprisoned in Russia for nearly 10 months, she's had a change of heart. The WNBA star reveals what representing the USA means to her. https://t.co/pJChXLEaUM pic.twitter.com/mcE6rqlMTS
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 11, 2024
