Revealed: Putin has two secret sons with former gymnast

President Vladimir Putin has two secret young sons who are kept under heavy guard at one of his luxurious presidential residences and are not allowed to play with other children.

Russian President Vladimir Putin tours the corvette Rezkiy while visiting the naval base of the Russian Pacific Fleet's Primorye Flotilla in Vladivostok. Picture: AFP

President Vladimir Putin has two young sons who are hidden away from the world at a heavily guarded presidential residence and rarely interact with other children, a Russian investigative journalism website has said.

Their mother is Alina Kabaeva, the former Olympic rhythmic gymnast whose relationship with Putin has been an open secret in Russia for more than a decade, according to the Dossier Centre.

Ivan, nine, and Vladimir Jr, five, spend most of the year at their father’s mansion near Lake Valdai, northwest of Moscow, where they are surrounded by governesses, nannies, teachers and officers from the Kremlin Guard. The Valdai residence has been protected by air defence systems since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The report was compiled with the help of a member of staff at the Valdai residence, the Dossier Centre said. It said it had verified the staff member’s identity and employment with the Putin family.

Alina Kabaeva performs with clubs during a training session of the Rhythmic Gymnastic at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

The report provided details on almost every aspect of the children’s lives. Their toys include a huge collection of Lego sets and an iPad, which is used for both games and video lessons. There are two ponies and rabbits at the residence, as well as a St Bernard dog which is cared for by Kremlin guards but lives with the family.

“They have to play mostly alone or with adults,” the report said. “They only see their parents late at night.”

The Putin boys have personal chefs who prepare separate dishes for them. Like their father, they have their own mugs and drink only from them. They eat at noon and then take a nap, and after waking up, there are lessons and sports.

Putin has never made any direct reference to the boys. However, he told children at the opening of a school in a remote area of Siberia this week that “members of my family, the little ones, speak Chinese”. His sons also study English and German.

Ivan was born in the spring of 2015 in the Swiss city of Lugano, while Vladimir Jr was born in the spring of 2019 in Moscow, the ­report said.

Putin daughter Maria Vorontsova 39, is an endocrinologist. Picture: Rossia 24

Putin and Kabaeva are said to have advertised for a live-in English teacher this year. The advert was apparently posted by the Moscow-based English Nanny company. It did not identify the clients, but warned that the family lives in isolation and that it was necessary to undergo two weeks of quarantine before starting work at the residence. People who met Putin during the pandemic were also forced to self-isolate for two weeks. Staff at the Valdai residence are barred from leaving the grounds, but have the use of a gym and tennis court.

The English Nanny company said that it knew the family well and had found several British and German teachers for them in the past. The salary on offer was €6500 ($12,705) a month. Dossier said that turnover in the job was high. Putin has had staff from Britain and New Zealand in the past, but is now said to prefer workers from countries that are friendly to Russia, such as South Africa.

Vladimir Putin’s mansion in Valdai is protected by air defence systems and the Kremlin Federal Guard. Pictyure: Navalny website

In February and March, the boys are moved to a luxury residence close to the Krasnaya Polyana resort, where they have been learning to ski. They spend July and August on luxury yachts, usually in the Gulf of Finland, the Black Sea coast and Russia’s northern lakes. They travel by armoured train or private jet.

Their names are not included in official databases and they have been provided with “cover documents” of the type given to spies or people in witness protection programs, the report said.

The dictator has spoken of his dislike of American cartoons, comparing them unfavourably to Soviet-era animated films. However, Ivan is said to be a huge fan of Disney and annoys Putin by pretending to be characters from its most popular films.

Putin has two adult daughters from his ex-wife, Lyudmila. Maria Vorontsova, 39, is an endocrinologist, and Katerina Tikhonova, 38, is a tech executive and former rock ’n’ roll acrobat dancer. Putin has never acknowledged them as his daughters, and refers to them as “these women”. He is also said to have a daughter, Luiza, 21, from an affair he had shortly before he became president in 2000.

Ivan is reported to have told his tutors and security guards on several occasions that Putin was so happy when he was born that he shouted “Hurray! Finally! A boy!”

The Dossier Centre was founded by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a former oligarch who spent 10 years in Russian prisons after publicly accusing high-ranking officials of corruption. Its report said that it had discovered photographs of Putin’s son Ivan but had chosen not to publish them.

THE TIMES