A Russian court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by WNBA star Brittney Griner against her nine-year sentence for drug smuggling, Interfax reported.
The ruling means Griner, 32, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, will leave pre-trial detention near Moscow and be sent to serve her prison term in a penal colony elsewhere in Russia.
President Joe Biden has made a priority of securing the release of Griner and another jailed American in Russia, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan. Amid a vocal campaign from the basketball star’s supporters, the U.S. leader has denounced Griner’s prison sentence as “unacceptable.”
