Russian President Vladimir Putin has sparked rumours that his former gymnast lover is pregnant again.
The leader was reportedly left "upset" after hearing the news.
A well-placed source claimed the reason for Putin being spotted looking "depressed and somewhat aloof" is due to the pregnancy of the woman reported to be his mistress, 38-year-old Alina Kabaeva.
Russian political expert Valery Soloviev, who has close connections with Kremlin insiders, shared the news with Russian news Telegram channel GeneralSVR, which posted: "We have already reported that yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to eyewitnesses, looked depressed and somewhat aloof.
"This is understandable. Yesterday, Putin learned that his long-term cohabitant and mother of his children, Alina Kabaeva, was pregnant for another, or rather, apparently, an extraordinary time.
"Here, the president would live and be happy, but no."
Former Olympic gymnast Alina Kabaeva has long been rumoured to be the Russian President's mistress, as the Express reports.
However, she has never publicly addressed persistent reports about the pair's relationship, including marriage and pregnancy.
The pair are already believed to share two sons together, aged three and seven.
Evidence published by Swiss paper Tagesanzeiger reported speaking to a close friend of the gynaecologist who claims to have been present at the birth of Putin and Ms Kabayeva's first son in 2015.
The child was reportedly born at celebrity clinic "Sant'Anna", near Lake Lugano in Switzerland.
The report adds that a second son between Putin and Ms Kabayeva was born in 2019. However, this took place in Moscow at the Russian President's request.
It is unknown where the children and Ms Kabayeva live now, although the Wall Street Journal estimates they are in Cologny near Geneva.
Ms Kabayeva is rarely seen in public. However, during a TV appearance last year, viewers noticed she was wearing a wedding ring which caused much speculation that the pair may have wedded in a secret ceremony.
After this, she quickly posted another video on social media, making sure not to be wearing any rings.
Many Russian citizens saw the athlete as the reason for Putin's divorce from ex-first lady Lyudmila, 63, mother of his two adult daughters.
Putin's ally, Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko, has also hinted in the past that the divorce decision came about after Ms Kabaeva "put pressure on the president".
Unlike two of Putin's daughters, Ms Kabaeva has not yet been included in Western sanctions despite calls from figures.
The dictator has been adamant about keeping his family out of the public eye, with their whereabouts currently unknown.
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