US soccer star Megan Rapinoe's private request to Biden
Upon receiving a phone call from the President regarding the awarding of the Medal of Freedom, Megan Rapinoe also raised the issue of Britney Griner's detention in Russia.
} President Joe Biden will present the United States' highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, at the White House on July 7, 2022. to Megan Rapinoe. J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo
US soccer star Megan Rapinoe announced earlier this summer that Joe President Biden informed her that he had awarded her the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor a president can award. But the famously politically active Olympian didn't let the moment of celebration stop demanding of the world's most powerful man. Rapinoe reportedly used a phone call with Biden to raise the issue of Britney Griner's detention in Russia and urged him to take further steps to secure her release.The White House did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the call, according to a person familiar with the call. and promised to continue to support her family.
Like LeBron James, Steph Curry, and others, Rapinoe is one of the more outspoken on the issue. During her impassioned speech at ESPY, she called for Greiner's release,and when Biden awarded her the Medal of Freedom, she gave her He wore a white suit with the letters "BG" emblazoned on the collar. July.
"I know the administration is working hard to get her home. It's obviously a difficult situation, but we need to get her home soon." said in her interview with ABC News. in July. “I think we can do more. Days after the two spoke, Biden publicly voiced her frustration with her Biden administration over the length of her detention and the pace of negotiations for the WNBA superstar. I spoke with Griner on the phone. Griner's team also enlisted Karen Finney, a veteran Democratic strategist, to provoke some of the president's supporters to bring the case to their attention. Since then, the administration has gradually admitted to being involved in a potential deal to bring WNBA superstar and former US Marine Paul Whelan home from Russia. Part of the negotiations also included a possible replacement for Viktor Bout, an arms dealer who is serving time in prison.
But progress remains elusive. Earlier this week, Griner's Russian legal team appealed her conviction on drug smuggling charges, and the basketball star's camp is now in wait-and-see mode as it continues to move through the Russian legal system. . Many of the biggest supporters of her release have largely remained silent so as not to interfere with the ongoing negotiations. Griner's wife has stopped appearing in national media for the time being. Russian officials said on Thursdaythat the United States and Russia were engaging in "quiet diplomacy" over the detention of the WNBA superstar.
Amazingly, as Griner's story unfolds, Russia-based basketball her team is looking to recruit US players into their league.
An offer to play this year was made despite Greiner remaining in a Russian prison, according to an international basketball industry insider. After reaching out to representatives of the West Wing Playbook, they were unable to find a single U.S. basketball player who actually plans to play professionally in Russia, at least this year. At least one sport his agent told West Wing Playbook that players are choosing to play in other international leagues instead. Stefano Mellor, the agent for American power forward Aaron Carver , who played for the Russian basketball team last year, said he plans to play in Italy this year.
