- Brittney Griner met President Joe Biden at the 2023 White House Correspondents' Dinner in DC.
- Biden agreed to a prisoner exchange with Russia in December to bring the WNBA superstar home.
Brittney Griner and her wife, Cherelle, attended the 2023 White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington, DC.
For the first time since she returned home from nearly a year detained in Russia, the WNBA superstar met the man most responsible for securing her freedom.
Griner said she had an "amazing" and "emotional" first in-person encounter with President Joe Biden at Saturday's event. Biden told the Phoenix Mercury center it was good to see her," Griner recounted to CBS News' Gayle King, saying it was a moving interaction "for both of us."
"He kept saying how big of a fan he was of mine and how much he loved the way I play basketball," she added with a laugh. "I thought [that] was pretty cool."
Biden was instrumental in negotiating, and later agreeing to, the prisoner exchange that brought Griner home from Russia. Griner, who had spent the better part of a decade competing overseas in Russia during the WNBA offseason, was initially detained in February 2022 when agents at a Moscow airport discovered vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage.
After 10 grueling months — which included a nine-year prison sentence, a failed appeal, a stint at one of Russia's most notorious penal colonies, and a gutting decision to cut her signature locks for survival — Griner boarded a plane back to the states thanks to a swap for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Five months later, Griner is still adjusting to her renewed freedom and increased level of fame. She's even preparing to return to WNBA play with the Mercury this summer.
In the interim, she's made appearances at major events like the Super Bowl, the WM Phoenix Open, the NAACP Image Awards, and the Met Gala. But her shout-out at the White House Correspondents' Dinner may have been the most special moment of them all.
"Tonight, unlike last year, Brittney Griner is here with her wife, Cherelle," Biden said from the podium at the event. "Brittney, where are ya, kid? Stand up. I love this woman."
—USA TODAY (@USATODAY) May 1, 2023
The crowd at the Washington Hilton then gave the two-time gold medalist a standing ovation.
"This time last year we were praying for you, Brittney, hoping you knew how hard all us were fighting for your release," Biden added. "It's great to have you home. And boy, I can hardly wait to see you back on the court, kid."
Griner and her teammates will head to Los Angeles for their season opener on May 19. Two days later, they'll head back to Phoenix for the 6-foot-9 star's highly anticipated return to her home court.