Vladimir Putin blames alleged lover's friends for leaking details of their lifestyle, claim insiders

Russia President Vladimir Putin's secret life with gymnast Alina Kabaeva, was exposed by the latter's friends earlier this week.

According to the claims made by Kremlin insiders, the 39-year-old is a former Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast and allegedly lives in a £100 million luxury mansion near Moscow.

Pictures of the 13,000 sq. ft mansion showcases its luxurious interiors which were reportedly inspired by Putin's love for his hometown of St Petersburg and its 18th century Hermitage Museum.

The Project, a Russian investigative site, has claimed that the Russian leader is believed to have bought the grand property on Lake Valdai for Kabaeva using a slush fund in Cyprus.

According to the Telegram channel General SVR, which claims to have received information from a Kremlin insider, the revelations sparked a feud between him and Kalaeva.

The channel further claimed that Putin, who was infuriated by this, blamed Kalaeva's gossiping friends for causing the leak.

"Putin said that he had 100 per cent information that the leak came from Kabaeva's circle of friends," the channel stated while adding that no one had ever seen the president so furious before.

According to the channel, the enraged dictator stated that her friends talk "on every corner about everything they know and don't know."

A construction executive who worked around the mansion until 2005 leaked pictures of it to The Project.

In one of the images, gilded chairs are arranged around a glass table with a spherical chandelier with golden leaves hanging from the ceiling. The contractor stated that guests were encouraged to reach out and take one of the golden leaves.

Another image shows a massive chandelier that appears to be studded with rubies.

A construction company owned by Yuri Kovalchuk, a businessman known as "Putin's banker," is said to have carried out the work on the mansion which was completed in 2020.

Kabaeva's luxury 'wooden mansion' is said to be less than a half mile from Valdai, where Putin also has his heavily guarded and private residence.

The ex-gymnast is alleged to have a secret family with Putin, which she had denied. Both Putin and Kabaeva have also repeatedly denied that they are in a relationship.

However, unnamed officials claimed to have seen children on the property, and satellite images taken between 2016 and 2020 revealed a playground in the woods which is believed to have been built for the family.

The area has also been frequented by Kabaeva's distant female relatives, who are described as her chaperones in leaked train manifests, who also own properties in the area, according to reports.

The villa's existence was first reported in 2021 by the team of Alexei Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, who claimed that budget funds were used to lease the property from Kovalchuk.

Unnamed officials who have attended Putin's private parties claim they have never seen the two together but are certain they do have a relationship. They claimed that only top-ranking officers in Putin's security detail are aware of their arrangement.

Another sign of their close bonds came in 2014, when Kabaeva was appointed to head Russia's National Media Group, a massive media conglomerate owned by Kovalchuk, despite having no relevant experience in the field.

The post provides her approximately £8.6 million per year. However, it is unclear whether she still holds the position.

Kabaeva is also revealed to own a number of other luxury properties in Russia, including a luxury penthouse in Sochi on the Black Sea, which is said to be the largest apartment in Russia.