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2010-12-14 Alina is still far too good to be wasted on Putin

Submitted by Hermit Barber on Wed, 2010-12-15 21:59

Source: Huffington Post
Credits: Curtis M. Wong
Dated: 2010-12-14

Alina Kabayeva, Vladimir Putin's Alleged Mistress, Poses For Russian 'Vogue' (PHOTOS)

Russia Vogue January 2011 cover

In 2004, Vladimir Putin -- then Russia's president -- was photographed alongside gymnast Alina Kabayeva at a Kremlin banquet in Moscow.

Kabaeva attends the senior event at European Championships in Rhythmic Gymnastics in Turin, Italy on June 6, 2008.

Kabaeva performs with a ribbon during Japan's Ion Cup rythmic gymnastics competition in November 2006.

In 2008, singer Iosif Kobzon and Kabaeva looked at souvenirs during the first in 2008 session of the parliament's lower chamber in Moscow.

Kabaeva performs in the rhythmic gymnastics individual all-around final during the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Kabaeva takes home the gold at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Kabaeva performs with a hoop at the gymnastics rhythmic individual all-around qualification the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.

In the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Kabaeva finished the top score with a total 53.300 points after two events -- ball and hoop.

Kabaeva performs at the Artistic and Rythmic Gymnastics European Team Championships in Moscow in 2003.

In a move that is certain to set tongues wagging in the fashion world, Alina Kabayeva -- the reputed mistress of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin -- is set to grace the pages of Russian Vogue next month.

The 27-year-old former Olympic gymnast is seen on the cover of the magazine's January 2011 issue wearing a gold Balmain gown, StyleBistro is reporting. The issue is already shaking up readers, many of which have taken to online forums to vent their disapproval, particularly since the dress -- worth an estimated $33,000 -- had previously been photographed for other publications.

According to the Daily Mail, Kabayeva is best known in her native Russia for participating in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where she took home a bronze medal, followed by a gold medal four years later in Athens. Putin reportedly requested an audience with the then-17-year-old Kabayeva upon her return from Sydney.

Though reps for both Kabayeva and Putin have denied the allegations of an affair, a St. Petersburg wedding planning firm claimed they had been contacted to plan the couple's wedding in 2008. Kabayeva gave birth to a son last year, though the father has never been publicly identified. Meanwhile, the 58-year-old Putin has been married to Lyudmila Shkrebneva since 1983 -- incidentally, the same year Kabayeva was born.


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