Who is Alina Kabaeva? Putin's ex-gymnast 'lover' facing calls for deportation

An Olympic gymnast and rumoured mistress of Vladimir Putin is facing being deported from Switzerland over her links to the Russian president.

As the Ukraine crisis rages on, Alina Kabaeva, 38, is reportedly living in a “private and secure” Swiss chalet with her children, but a petition for her removal from the country has received over 63,000 signatures.

The petition describes Kabaeva as the “favourite wife of a delusional dictator” and accuses Swiss authorities of “continuing to host her and her family, whilst Putin is destroying the lives of millions”.

Started by Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian nationals, the petition compares Putin to Adolf Hitler, and calls on Switzerland to see that “Eva Braun” be “returned to her Fuehrer”.

The petition also condemns Kabaeva's actions while a member of the Russian parliament in reportedly drafting what is described as a "shameful" law that deprives many Russian orphans of being adopted abroad.

Putin was previously married to Lyudmila Shkrebneva but there were rumours that he had divorced her in 2008 and became engaged to Kabaeva – claims which were subsequently denied.

While Putin and Shkrebneva’s divorce was finalised in 2014, rumours of a relationship with Kabaeva have always been denied.

Watch: Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko attacks Putin: 'He's sick, he's an unhealthy man'

Further denials were also made when it was reported that Putin fathered multiple children with Kabaeva – including a son in 2008, a daughter in 2012, another daughter in 2015 and twin sons in 2019.

Despite this, Putin has been pictured with Kabaeva multiple times and she is widely regarded by Russians to be the cause of Putin’s marriage breakdown.

Formerly a practising Muslim, Kabaeva is a former Olympic gymnast and gold medalist who was once named ‘Russia's most flexible woman’.

As well as her two Olympic medals, she also holds 21 European Championship medals and 14 World Championship medals.

However, she was convicted of using a banned substance in 2001 and was disqualified from competing for two years.

A separate petition on Change.org is demanding she now be stripped of her Olympic medals, saying that "she and other supporters of Putin are no less culpable for terrorising the innocent people of Ukraine”.

Following her sports career, Kabaeva transitioned to politics and was the deputy speaker in Russia’s State Duma between 2007 and 2014, going on to become the chair of the Kremlin-linked National Media Group.

But in recent years she has disappeared from the limelight and stopped attending public functions.

It is believed she is currently in Switzerland due to their four children all holding Swiss passports – making it potentially difficult for authorities there to take action against Kabaeva.

And while it has not been officially confirmed that she is in Switzerland, there have been reports of her visiting restaurants and cafes with an armed guard.