Brittney Griner caught the attention of the masses when she was a college basketball at Baylor University before advancing on to the Phoenix Mercury of the Women’s National Basketball Association, and now she is joining another team: Nike’s.
With the inking of her latest contract to model for the sports brand, WNBA star Brittney Griner has become the first openly gay athlete to sign with Nike.
But the excitement doesn’t stop there, the 6’8″ Brittney won’t be styling in sports bras, she’ll be modeling men’s apparel. The contract supposedly reflects Griner’s more androgynous clothing style and according to ESPN, the style is being picked up by more and more major sports companies, so naturally Nike wanted to be the first to tap the niche market.
“We can’t get into specifics,” says Nike spokesman Brian Strong of the collaboration, “but it’s safe to say we jumped at the opportunity to work with her because she breaks the mold.”
The famous WNBA player is also in the latest issue of ESPN Magazine where she delivers a powerful message saying:
“I am 100-percent happy. When I was at Baylor, I wasn’t fully happy because I couldn’t be all the way out. It feels so good saying it: I am a strong, black lesbian woman. Every single time I say it, I feel so much better.”
We wish the trailblazer the best of luck.
