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Yelena Leuchanka at the 2015 European Basketball Championship
Photo: ATTILA KISBENEDEK / AFP
Basketball national player Yelena Leuchanka has been arrested in her home country of Belarus for protests against the controversial head of state Alexander Lukashenko.
She is said to be detained for 15 days.
This was announced by the human rights group Viasna.
Accordingly, the 37-year-old was arrested at the airport in Minsk, Leuchanka wanted to leave the country for treatment.
The two-time Olympic participant has played in the US professional league WNBA.
According to Viasna, Leuchanka took part in opposition protests against Lukashenko, which have kept the country in suspense for weeks.
She also signed a petition in which just over 650 athletes from Belarus called for an end to the violence in the country and new elections.
"We feel obliged to represent the voice of the Belarusian people," she said on behalf of the Free Union of Belarusian Athletes in a video that she published on Instagram last week.
Leuchanka isn't the first known sportswoman to be arrested for her activism.
Read more about the role of athletes in Belarus: The Awakening of Athletes
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