Alina Kabaeva has rarely spoken about her alleged ex-boyfriend, Russian President Vladimir Putin, until this week, when she attended the ceremony where he was officially named president following Russia’s recent election.
At the beginning of this year, Alina Kabaeva, who allegedly had a secret relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin for about two decades, which resulted in two children, was the subject of rumors. Information appeared in the international press according to which Vladimir Putin, aged 71, replaced the Olympic gymnast with the young and charming “tsarina” of the Internet, Ekaterina Mizulina, transmits Stiri.md with reference to adevarul.ro.
After the apparent breakup, Alina Kabaeva returned to her first love and spent more time at his gymnastics academy in Sochi. But during a rare public appearance outside of it this week, she praised Vladimir Putin, just hours after his inauguration speech as Russia’s president.
“A special military operation is underway, it’s not easy, it’s complicated, but it’s wonderful that people came to the elections, supported the president, supported his policies, and we, as voters, see that our leader does not rely on foreign countries but relies on his own people. This is the key to all our successes and victories,” she declared in front of Russian media cameras.
Speaking about the future of Russia at the Olympic Games, where she also won a gold medal in 2004, Alina Kabaeva expressed herself partially in parables, the media speculating that she slipped in hints regarding her relationship with Vladimir Putin.
“An athlete is just like a warrior. If management tells you to go, then you have to go. If management tells you not to go, then don’t go. If the coach told me it’s impossible, whether I want it or not, then it’s impossible!”, said Alina Kabaeva.
Vladimir Putin, however, seems much more interested in 39-year-old Ekaterina Mizulina at the moment. Nicknamed “Barbie” by a critic in the Ukrainian press, this is the one that would have won the heart of the “warrior”.
The woman is very different from Kabaeva, in that she is blonde and has a social media profile, compared to Putin’s former mistress, now brunette and mysterious, who preferred to stay away from the press and often went months without appearing in public.
Ekaterina Mizulina likes to be in the center of attention and is very active, including in the online environment. She has been at the forefront of Russia’s crackdown on anti-war online content, while also being the biggest name to support the country’s anti-LGBT legislation
