5 Interesting Facts about Russian President Vladimir Putin

5 interesting facts about Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

President of Russia Vladimir Putin has ruled since 2000. Putin was born on October 7, 1952 in Leningrad, now known as St Petersburg.

The figure of Putin is often known as a dictatorial and authoritarian leader. However, the Russian leader has had unique experiences, and enjoys a wide variety of sports.

1. | Sports Addict, Judo Black Belt Owner

Putin is known to have many unique hobbies. Apart from serving as Russia's leader, Putin is known to enjoy physical activities, such as mountain climbing and horse riding.

Quoting INDONEWTRAVEL.COM, Putin is said to like to exercise and has a black belt in the field of judo. Putin has been practicing judo since he was 11 years old.

"I was just a boy when I started judo. Then I became very interested in the martial arts, their special philosophy, culture, relations with opponents and combat," Putin said, quoted from the official website of the Russian government.

Apart from liking martial arts, Putin is also interested in skiing. In 2009, Putin skied in the Moscow region with ski resort owner Karl Schranz.

Putin also enjoys playing hockey and practicing gymnastics.

In 2015, Putin was seen exercising in the gym at one of his residences in the Bocharov Ruchei state of Sochi. He was accompanied by the then Prime Minister of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev. Both are seen trying various muscle-building tools.

2. | Hobbies Fishing and Hunting in the Jungle

Besides being fond of sports, Putin is also known as a man who likes to hunt.

In 2019, Putin celebrated his 67th birthday by exploring the jungle and hunting in the mountains near the Yanisei River, Siberia. Apart from hunting animals, Putin also hunts wild mushrooms.

Putin also said that he likes fishing.

"Fishing is my kind of sport. I love it and I'm always happy when I take the opportunity I have to sit and fish. Unfortunately, those opportunities are very rare," Putin said on the official Russian government website.

3. | Been a Taxi Driver

Even though Putin is now in power over Russia, he has experienced unpleasant things.

Putin claimed to have been a taxi driver when the Soviet Union collapsed. Putin recounted this experience while interviewing a Russian television documentary program on Monday (13/12).

"Sometimes (I am) have to work odd jobs and drive taxis. It's very uncomfortable to talk about this, but unfortunately it happened," said Putin, quoted from INDONEWTRAVEL.COM.

4. | Labeled as Russia's Sexiest President

Putin also had time to get an award as the sexiest man in Russia.

"Russians still call Vladimir Putin the most attractive famous man in the country," said Superjob.ru, the job site that conducted the survey.

Superjob.ru said it conducted a live survey among 1,000 men and 1,000 women in more than 300 Russian cities between March 22 and April 1. The poll was published on April 2, 2021.

5. | Putin's face was used as a souvenir

Putin's face had adorned souvenirs at Russian stalls. In 2012, Alexei Sergiyenko, a painter and businessman, opened a Putin-themed exhibition with the title: "President. A man with a good soul.

The walls of Sergiyenko's studio are lined with pop-art images of Putin carrying a child on his shoulders dressed as a Hollywood superhero.

Sergiyenko also has 64 souvenir stalls, most of them near a Saviour on the Spilled Blood cathedral. In each souvenir, Putin's face is imprinted in hopes that tourists might be tempted to buy.