Alina Kabaeva could hardly have imagined the life she has been able to build for herself. And right now she will be finding it just as difficult to envisage what the future holds.The 39-year-old whom some have termed the Empress of Russia lives in boundless luxury, her position secure, it is said, because she has provided Vladimir with the male heir he has so long craved.Yet she cannot be blind to the fact that, even at the very summit of the Russian kleptocracy, hers remains a highly precarious life. As her children play in the ‘golden mansion’ that is their home in the forests of northern Russia, between Moscow and St Petersburg, they are guarded by a Pantsir air defence system installed in a nearby village.
Load More
Load More