Is Vladimir Putin's gymnast 'lover' Alina Kabaeva pregnant with their third child?

Russian President Vladimir Putin is reportedly shocked to discover his rumoured 38-year-old gymnast lover, Alina Kabaeva, is pregnant again, even as his forces continue to wage war on Ukraine. According to the Russian Telegram channel General SVR, which is believed to be run by a former Kremlin intelligence officer, the 2004 Olympic gold medallist's pregnancy was not a planned one.

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The 69-year-old Russian leader, who is reportedly undergoing treatment for both cancer and Parkinson's disease is said to have been in a secret relationship with Alina Kabaeva since 2008. It has been claimed the couple already has two children together, which Putin has not publicly acknowledged.

According to Telegram channel General SVR, "Putin found out his mistress is yet again pregnant — and by the looks of it, this wasn't planned. We have already reported that yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to eyewitnesses, looked depressed and somewhat aloof."

"This is understandable as yesterday Putin learned that his long-term cohabitant and mother of his children, Alina Kabaeva, was pregnant for another, or rather, apparently, an extraordinary time," the channel's report added.

The report of Kabaeva's pregnancy came even as Putin was spotted keeping warm with a heavy blanket as he oversaw the massive parade of his country’s military might to mark Victory Day – the day when Russia marks the end of World War Two. 

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The same channel had earlier claimed that the Russian president, who turns 70 in October, would be incapacitated "for a short time” this month following a surgical procedure. The report added that he planned to hand the reins over to close aide Nikolai Patrushev, former chief of the Federal Security Service, while he recuperates.

Reports said Putin and Kabaeva's first son was born in secrecy in Switzerland amid huge security in 2015. The second son was reportedly delivered in Moscow in 2019 with the same obstetrician flying to Russia for the birth. According to the Daily Mail, last week a document revealed the EU is planning to impose sanctions on the Kabaeva for her role in Kremlin propaganda.

The report added that Kabaeva is a late addition to the list of individuals targeted in the sixth package of measures against Russia in response to the war in Ukraine after the gymnast last month likened the Soviet victory over Nazism in the Second World War to Putin's invasion.

The proposal reportedly identifies Kabaeva as the chairwoman of the board of directors of the National Media Group, a holding company that owns significant shares in almost all major Russian state media that make-up Putin's propaganda machine. Quoting the document, the report added that the former gymnast and former Duma lawmaker is 'closely associated with President Vladimir Putin'.

Another report in The Wall Street Journal, citing US officials, stated that Kabaeva and her family have gained personal fortune thanks to her connection with Putin's inner circle. The report cites classified US intelligence that names Kabaeva as a beneficiary of Putin's wealth. US officials have held off sanctioning Kabaeva themselves out of concern that Putin might view it as a personal attack, The Guardian reported.