Basketball player Brittney Griner’s “unprecedented” journey back to the Olympic Games, less than two years after she was released from a Russian prison in a saga that rocked American sport, has been applauded by her US teammate Diana Taurasi at the Paris Games.

Twice gold medallist Griner was released from one of Russia’s most notorious penal colonies in a high-profile prisoner exchange in December 2022. She would never play abroad again professionally, she said, unless it was to compete at the Olympics.

On Monday, as the US begin their campaign for an eighth consecutive gold, Griner will now wear the red, white and blue jersey again.

“What BG (Griner)’s gone through in the last couple of years is obviously unprecedented,” Taurasi, who is also her teammate on the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team Phoenix Mercury, said on Saturday.

“For her to be able to come back, to get on that flight, to come overseas, it was a big moment for her in a lot of ways. But I’m glad she did it because she’s a remarkable person.”

The 33-year-old Griner, who had played professionally in Russia, was detained in a Moscow airport with vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. She had a prescription in the United States for medical marijuana and pleaded guilty to charges of possessing and smuggling illegal drugs but insisted she had made an “honest mistake.”

She spent nearly 10 months in detention.

“Not saying that, you know, the minute she got back from that she was the happiest person on earth. But she found a way to navigate all those emotions to move forward,” said Taurasi.

Republican lawmakers, including former President Donald Trump, were critical of the deal that saw Griner released in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout, while those in US sport celebrated her release.

“I always say she’s the person with the biggest heart,” Taurasi said. “And I think that’s why people went to bat for her so hard, because they know what kind of person she is.”

Griner said earlier this week that she felt comfortable at the Games — though reiterated that she would not play abroad again in any professional capacity.

“Everybody’s thinking about how it is for me coming back overseas,” she said. “But it’s good. I feel good being here, being in France. I feel safe. I feel great.”