Antler baths and isolation - As Putin approaches 70,
investigative journalists look into the state of his health
Since the moment Vladimir Putin became president of Russia, the Kremlin has kept information about his health under wraps. At first, no one really noticed. But later, when, from time to time, Putin disappeared from public view, many suggested (without presenting conclusive evidence, mind you) that he might be undergoing some kind of medical treatment. What’s more, Putin has been accompanied on all of his trips by a sizeable retinue of doctors. In a new report, the investigative outlet Proekt looks into the health of the Russian president (Meduza’s special correspondent Svetlana Reiter contributed reporting). We’ve summarized the investigation’s findings here.
Macho man
At the beginning of his presidency, Vladimir Putin “exploited the image of an active man in the prime of his life,” recalls Proekt. Back then, according to a government official who worked with him, the Russian president rarely underwent checkups and paid little attention to the state of his health (if he had a fever, for example, he brushed it off). Meanwhile, Kremlin officials, busy constructing a macho image of Putin, decided not to tell the public anything negative about his health.
In those years, Putin’s fondness for horseback riding created problems as he sustained injuries from falls, reports Proekt. An acquaintance of the president said that after one such fall from a horse, Putin “couldn’t even get back on his feet” for some time, and required lengthy treatment.
During a flower-laying ceremony at the Monument to Minin and Pozharsky on Unity Day in 2012, Putin had a noticeable limp. As Proekt notes, TV broadcasts tried not to show Putin, footage of the event was never posted on the Kremlin’s website, and news agencies were strictly forbidden from mentioning that the president had been limping. By the end of 2012, Putin’s limp had worsened — and because of this all events involving the president were limited to one hour.
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https://meduza.io/en/feature/2022/04/01/antler-baths-and-isolation
= new reply since forum marked as read
Though stories about Catherine the Great are likely false:
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/unbridled-lust/
