Source: Mike Mattina / Getty
Brittney Griner’s new chapter of freedom following her release from a Russian penal colony includes a new change in her appearance.
Footage of the 6-foot-9 WNBA star showed Griner returning to the U.S. from Russia without her torso-length locs.
A source close to the Pheonix Mercury player told Insider that the 32-year-old basketball star decided to cut her hair to avoid the impacts of Russia’s brutal winters.
More context provided by the outlet and ESPN’s TJ Quinn highlighted that Russian authorities were holding Griner in a facility with limited heat and hot water and that the WNBA felt especially cold after washing her locs.
Brittney Griner’s Locs And Release
Griner’s Russian attorney, Maria Blagovolina, told ESPN that the athlete presumed she’d stay in Russia for the long haul.
That said, Griner’s big chop was prompted by the athlete wanting to make her life easier.
“She should have waited until New Year’s Day,” Blagovolina stated.
“She had honestly no complaints,” the attorney added, reflecting on Griner’s life in the penal colony. “Things could have been much worse.”
President Biden said on Dec. 8 that securing Griner’s release took “painstaking and intense negotiations.”
“This is a day we’ve worked toward for a long time,” he expressed. “We never stopped pushing for her release.”
Griner was released via a prisoner swap for Russian Arms dealer Viktor Bout.
The athlete was detained in Russia since February after being apprehended at a Moscow airport for having cannabis vape cartridges in her possession.
Griner later pled guilty and was sentenced to nine years in Russian prison. While the athlete chopped off her locs out of presumed necessity, the act often symbolizes a new beginning for those who’ve grown their hair for such a long time.
We wish Griner and her family the best as they transition into her latest chapter, one of freedom.
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