Brittney Griner and her wife, Cherelle Griner, are ending their marriage shortly after celebrating their eight-year anniversary.
Well before they tied the knot, Brittney and Cherelle met as students at Baylor University. In 2022, Griner was arrested in Russia for possessing cartridges containing hash oil. She was sentenced to nine years in prison before she was freed in a prisoner exchange involving Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Despite having a connection that nearly lasted two decades, Brittney and Cherelle have apparently reached their breaking point.
According to multiple reports, Griner filed for divorce in Fulton County this Thursday. The WNBA All-Star claims their marriage is "irretrievably broken."
TMZ reported that Brittney's asking the court for joint legal custody of hers and Cherelle's child.
"Brittney's asking the court for joint legal custody and to determine how much child support to award, if any at all," TMZ reported. "While Brittney balls up the basketball court, Cherelle dominates the court of law ... she's an attorney and was a leading advocate in pushing for Brittney's release from Russia back in late 2022, months after she was sentenced to 9 years in a Russian prison for allegedly possessing marijuana."
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Brittney recently praised her connection with Cherelle.
A few months ago, Griner opened up about her time in prison and how her wife was by her side through it all. Griner told WHYY that she wrote a letter to Cherelle saying how she could move on from their romance if needed.
“I was still at the detention center when I wrote this one,” Griner said. “It was a hard letter to write. It’s just like that’s a long time. It’s already a long time for someone to do it in the states, but you can visit them occasionally. You could never visit me [in Russia]. I wanted her to promise me that she’d still be my friend, that she’d still write to me.”
Neither Brittney nor Cherelle have released a statement on their divorce.
