Vladimir Putin’s Family Members have been a private part of his life for many years. Despite all the secrecy surrounding their identities, they have been uncovered.
His successful career in politics also meant the lives of his family members became an item of media gawking and speculation as is the case for many in public offices. From 1999 to 2008 when he started rising to the top of power, he also made sure his family members moved far away from his public image.
Notwithstanding, many allegations are made about his love life and the real number of children he fathered. Here is all we know about members of Putin’s family.
Meet Lyudmila Ocheretnaya, Vladimir Putin’s Ex-Wife
Lyudmila Shkrebneva who is also known as Lyudmila Ocheretnaya is the ex-wife of Vladimir Putin. She was born on January 6th, 1958, and served as the First lady of Russia from when Putin assumed the office of president to the end of their marriage.
She first met Putin in Leningrad where they were posted for work. Vladimir was already an intelligence officer for the Soviet Union secret police also known as the KGB while Lyudmila was a flight attendant for Aeroflot, a position that many people could only dream of then.
After they got acquainted through a mutual friend, they started dating and got married on July 28th, 1983. Their marriage produced two of his publicly known children, Mariya and Yekaterina.
Lyudmila served as the first lady of Russia when her husband assumed office as the president from 1999 to 2008 and between 2012 and 2013. Notably, her work in developing the Russian language was an important part of her career. She had studied Philology at Leningrad State University and she put her training into use. Though the work on the Russian language had its controversy, it remains one of her strongest points.
As Putin rose in career and later joined politics, his wife’s position was relegated to the background. According to Lyudmila, she saw less of her husband as his political career took off.
At the same, the cracks in the marriage started appearing. Notably, speculations started circulating about his extramarital affairs while he was still married to Lyudmila. Yet, many clampdowns on the sources of such rumors were made by the Russian Media watchdog.
The rumors were substantiated when they later announced their separation in 2013 just a few weeks to their 30th wedding anniversary. Both claimed their separation was a mutual decision. They divorced in 2014 and made a public announcement during a performance by the Kremlin Ballet at the State Kremlin Palace.
The end of that marriage effectively made ‘Russia’s strongman’ an eligible bachelor while Lyudmila joined the ranks of divorced first ladies in the world. She has since moved on to marry a businessman, Artur Ocheretny.
Vladimir Putin Allegedly Married Alina Kabaeva in A Secret Marriage
According to official records, the Russian President’s marriage to his ex-wife, Lyudmila Ocheretnaya was his first and only marriage. Yet, there have been many rumors regarding his involvement and alleged marriage to the Olympic gymnast, Alina Kabaeva. Alina who was born in 1983 and aside from being thirty years Putin’s junior, is one of Russia’s most decorated rhythmic gymnasts.
She started at the age of 3 and won her first European Championship when she turned 15 as the youngest member of the Russian squad. The years that followed were good for her career as she earned 2 Olympic Gold medals, 14 World Championships as well as 21 European Championships.
Her career suffered a blow after a doping conviction in 2001 and this led to her retirement I 2004. While that door closed, Alina joined politics at the Duma representing the United Russia Party. When she appeared as one of the torch bearers at the 2014 Olympic Opening ceremony, the rumors about her Putin were once more unearthed.
The claims surfaced as far back as 2008, yet they were always refuted. A strong proponent of Putin’s secret marriage is his political rival Navalny who has maintained that they two got married secretly.
These rumors continued unabated after Alina was seen wearing a wedding ring in 2016 and 2017 but she continuously refused to discuss the issue of her ‘marriage to Putin”
Many now refer to her as ‘Russia’s First Mistress’ and they ‘Secret First Lady’.
Also the Belarusian dictator, Alexander Lukashenko also alleged the real cause of Putin’s divorce to ‘pressure from Alina’ who he claims has a strong influence over him. Despite all this, the claims were kicked out after Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson gave a statement.
Vladimir Putin’s Two Daughters With Lyudmila
The former soviet intelligent officer has never revealed the identities of his children except when he makes a general reference to having daughters that are well educated. He had two daughters from his marriage to his ex-wife and former first lady of the country, Lyudmila.
His two daughters, Mariya and Yekaterina are highly educated women who have registered successful careers far away from their father’s fame and public office. Let’s meet his two daughters.
Mariya Putina Is Vladimir Putin’s First Daughter
- Date of Birth: April 28, 1985
- Age: 37 years old
- Place of Birth: Leningrad
- Parents: Vladimir Putin and Lyudmila Shrebneva Ocheratnaya
- Career: Endocrinology
- Spouse: Jorrit Faasen
She was born Maria Vladimirovna Putina on April 28 1985 in Leningrad. From a young age, her life was well hidden and kept from the media. Her father had her and younger sister, Yekaterina taken to East Germany during the gang clashes involving the Tambov Gang. While in East Germany, Mariya and her sister were the legal wards of Stasi Matthias Warnig, her father’s acquaintance and former KGB colleague.
Mariya has a rich educational pedigree, she attended mostly elite schools as a younger child alongside children of German and Australian diplomats after returning to Russia.
She studied Biology at St Petersburg State University before continuing in medicine at the Moscow State University. She later obtained her doctorate in Endocrinology making her an expert in the field.
The educated first child of Vladimir Putin is far away from her father’s office yet, close enough to advise him on issues regarding genetics. Her experience and expertise is quite far-reaching looking at the five publication she has so far with one being on the subject of idiopathic stunting in children.
The expert on dwarfism is knowledgeable on the usage of CRISPR to create genetically-engineered babies while also extending her studies to fighting cancer.
Mariya is married to her longtime boyfriend, Jorrit Faasen whom they share two children.
Vladimir Putin’s Second Daughter is Yekaterina Tikhonova
- Date of Birth: August 31, 1986
- Age: 36 years old
- Place of Birth: Dresden, East Germany
- Parents: Vladimir Putin and Lyudmila Shrebneva Ocheretnaya
- Career: Scientist
- Spouse: Kyril Shamalov(2013-2018)
Vladimir Putin’s second acknowledged child is Yekaterina Tikhonova who is also referred to as Yekaterina Vladimirovna Putina. She is just a year younger than her older sister, Mariya and they two share many aspects of their early life in common including the schools they attended.
The 36 year chose a career path that is different from her sister. She is a scientist and former aerobics dancer. Yekaterina studied Japanese and majored in Asian Studies before switching to Physics and Mathematics.
Unlike Mariya, ‘Katerina’ dropped the family surname at some point in her life to her maternal surname of Tikhonova. Its not sure why she did so but the most likely reason is due to security reasons.
In her early years, she dedicated time to the study and practice of aerobic rock and roll. She competed and represented her country but paid more attention to a career as a scientist after that phase had ended.
She heads a multibillion-dollar project called Innopraktika while also serving as the deputy director of the Institute of Mathematical Research of Complex Systems at the Mosco State University, her alma mata.
Yekaterina’s life is not as shrouded in secrecy as the state will have everyone believe. This stems from her marriage and divorce from one of the Rossiya Bank Heirs, Kirill Shamalov, son of Nikolay Shamalov who founded the bank. Their marriage lasted only five years before they parted ways in 2018.
Vladimir Putin’s Other Children are Shrouded in Scandal
The allegations about Putin’s love life have cost many their jobs while the state media watchdog clamps down on any source of the rumor that will shame his image.
Yet, over the years some of the rumors came to pass. While Putin refuses to acknowledge his children, there have been many allegations regarding the total number of children the politician has. Here is all we found about his hidden children:
Luiza Vladimirovna Rozova
- Date of Birth: 7, March 2003
- Age : 20 years old
- Place of Birth:
- Parents: Vladimir Putin, Svetlana Krivonogikh
- Career: DJ, Fashion Designer, Socialite
- Spouse: NA
The first strong contender for position among his children from previous relationships is a young lady called Luiza Rozova who has many aliases like Elizabeth Krivonogihk. She is said to be Putin’s love child with Svetlana Krivonogikh, a woman described as a ‘cleaner-turned-millionaire’.
Putin allegedly dated Luiza’s mother as far back as 1999 while he was still married to Lyudmila. The claims were first revealed by the Russian media Proekt in 2020 but the media outlet was later shot down by the state media watchdog.
The claims were never confirmed by Putin and also, Luiza has not accepted it but she only claimed that she and ‘a younger Putin may share a resemblance’. Whatever this means, it explains why she hides her face on her social media handle to prevent a comparison of their looks.
Notably, the alleged daughter is a DJ, fashionista and socialite noted for the high standard of living she maintains. In fact, her career blossomed ever since a connection was made between her and Putin. She started her fashion brand 123th Avenue not so long ago.
It was also reported that her birthday was celebrated in grand style. This came up after many observed the government car that picked her to a venue that was initially not booked in her name ahead of the celebration.
Till now, Putin has not acknowledged the claims but many that have seen her pictures seem to connect a resemblance between the two.
His Alleged Children With Alina Kabaeva
Putin’s many years of relationship with the gymnast likely produced children. Depending on the source that one is taking, his alleged children with Alina could be either 2, 3, or four. One source claimed they have four children, two of which are boys and a set of twin girls. The same source claim they were born in Switzerland and now own Swiss passports.
Other sources trace their children to her disappearance from public functions in 2018, many rumors circulated about her giving birth to their twin children then.
Even after she sent a written statement wishing the Russian women’s gymnastics team luck ahead of their appearance at the Olympics, it does not change the fact that she is not available to the public.
Where Are Putin’s Family Members?
At the moment though, the whereabouts of his family members have become a topic in the Russian-Ukrainian war that broke out in February 2022. While Putin is leading the war against Ukraine to defend his country from external aggression, he must have thought of his family’s safety too.
Many sources claim that Putin’s family is hidden in Siberian underground bunkers located in the Altai Mountains to survive a nuclear war.
Since Alina is said to have considerable influence over him, it is likely that it is her and her children that are being hidden. This particular claim made by the Russian professor Valeri Solovey has been kicked against as one of his conspiracy theories.
