Lawyers for US basketball star Brittney Griner, who is standing trial in Russia on drug charges, said on Tuesday they hoped she would receive a “lenient” sentence.
Griner, a two-time Olympic basketball gold medallist and Women’s NBA champion who had played in Russia, was detained in February, just days before Moscow launched its offensive in Ukraine.
She was charged with drug smuggling for possessing vape cartridges with cannabis oil.
She pleaded guilty and faces up to 10 years in a Russian prison.
The athlete, who is six-foot-nine (2.06 metres) tall, made a court appearance in the Moscow suburb of Khimki on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters, one of her lawyers, Alexander Boykov, said the 31-year-old basketball player would “probably” be cross-examined on Wednesday.
Her defence team expressed hope she would receive a lenient sentence, taking into account “a lot of extenuating circumstances”.
“We expect a rather lenient sentence,” Boykov said.