Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s alleged mistress is Vogue Russia’s cover girl for its January 2011 issue, a media report said.
The 27-year-old former rhythmic Olympic gymnast Alina Kabaeba, wearing a gold Balmain dress with her hands on her hips, will feature on the front cover of Vogue’s January 2011 edition, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The decision to put Kabaeba on Vogue Russia’s front cover was taken by the magazine’s new editor Viktoria Davydova who has courted controversy given the fact that Mr Putin recently denied a newspaper report that he has left his wife Ludmila, with whom he has two daughters, for Kabaeba.
While there is no substantive evidence that 58-year-old Putin is romantically linked to Kabaeba, who also happens to be an MP for his ruling United Russia party, the alleged affair has long been the hottest gossip topic among Russia’s elite.
The rumour first came to public prominence in 2008 when a Russian newspaper quoted a source as insisting the story was absolutely true. —PTI