According to Russia’s official state news agency TASS, the Khimki City Court in Moscow ruled that Griner should remain in detention until May 19.

Griner, a member of the US team that won Olympic gold medals at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, was arrested at an airport in Moscow last month after Russian customs officials said they found she was in possession of vape cartridges containing hashish oil.

The drugs charge reportedly carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

The Russian Federal Customs Service did not name the player who arrived on a flight from New York City on an unspecified date in February but said she was a "a member of the US National Basketball Association, a two-time Olympic basketball champion in the US team".

USA Basketball officially confirmed it was Griner, saying it was "aware of and closely monitoring the legal situation" facing the 31-year-old in a post on Twitter on March 5.

Her arrest comes as tensions between Moscow and the West have soared over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Hillary Clinton, a former US Secretary of State, is among those to call for her release, while a petition demanding Griner's return home has received more than 63,000 signatures.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed an embassy team had been assigned by Joe Biden’s administration to work on Griner’s case.

"There's only so much I can say given the privacy considerations at this point," said Blinken.

"More generally, whenever an American is detained anywhere in the world, we of course stand ready to provide every possible assistance, and that includes in Russia."

Ekaterina Kalugina, a member of Public Monitoring Commission - a semi-official body with access to Russian prisons - told TASS that Griner, who stands at 6ft 9in, was sharing a cell with two other women with no prior convictions.

"The only objective problem has turned out to be the basketball player's height," added Kalugina.

"The beds in the cell are clearly intended for a person of lesser height."

Griner is a seven-time all-star centre for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).

The American, also a member of the US team that won the International Basketball Federation World Cup in 2014 and 2018, is the only woman in US college history to score 2,000 points and block 500 shots.

Griner has played in Russia during the WNBA off-season for several years, where she earns a salary of more than a $1 million (£755,000/€955,000), nearly five times what she can earn in the US.

She has represented UMMC Ekaterinburg since 2014 with team-mates Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart.

UMMC Ekaterinburg are Russia’s dominant team, having won the national championship for 13 consecutive years since 2009.