• Megan Rapinoe paid tribute to Brittney Griner.
• Griner entered a guilty plea to drug charges in a Russian court.
• Griner has been imprisoned in Russia since February.

Megan Rapinoe paid respect to imprisoned WNBA player Brittney Griner as she was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor, by adorning a cream blazer with the initials “BG” and flowers embroidered on the lapel.

Rapinoe captioned a close-up image of the needlework detail in an Instagram story with, “The most important part of the day…BG we love you.”

Griner has been imprisoned in Russia since February on suspicions of drug smuggling and is currently being treated as having been “wrongfully detained.”

Also Read

WNBA star Brittney Griner pleads guilty to drug charges in Russia

Brittney Griner pleads guilty to drug smuggling charges. US basketball star was...

Griner entered a guilty plea to drug charges in a Russian court on Thursday, the same day Rapinoe was awarded the Medal of Freedom.

Rapinoe repeated the concerns expressed by many who support the Phoenix Mercury star that she is being exploited as a political pawn in the midst of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

She stated in an Instagram story that “BG is a being exploited as a political pawn and we need to bring her home [sic] immediately.”

“This plea doesn’t change that @potus needs to and is working hard to get her home. From what I understand she had to plea to keep the process of getting her home asap in motion. BG we are with you.”

As was the case with Trevor Reed, an American veteran who was imprisoned in Russia for three years before being freed in April, some have theorized that Griner could be freed and sent back to the US in a prisoner swap. There is no sign that Griner will soon undergo such a swap.

Also Read

Megan Rapinoe has threatened Dwayne Johnson with legal action over new XFL logo

Megan Rapinoe has threatened Dwayne Johnson, famously known as ‘The Rock’ with...

A senior US official told CNN that Griner was still expected to be found guilty and to accept responsibility before any prospective prisoner swap.

Days before he was released, Reed was forced to sign a letter admitting his guilt—something he had fought doing for nearly the entire duration of his arrest, the official said.

“It is part of the show and the document has no legal force or effect in the US. It is effectively meaningless,” “said Jonathan Franks, a spokesman for the Reed family.