A former world boxing champion known as "Beast from the East" was spotted among the crowd gathered to watch Vladimir Putin drone on during his Victory Day speech today.
Nikolai Valuev became a politician in Russia's state Duma after a career in boxing from 1993 to 2009 which saw him hold the WBA heavyweight title twice between 2005 and 2009.
Valuev, measuring a massive seven-feet tall, was well known for being the tallest and heaviest heavyweight in boxing history, weighing 300lb.
In 2009, he faced off against British boxing champ David Haye in a bout marketed as "David vs. Goliath".
But after his time in the ring, Valuev became involved in politics and rose to become a member of the parliament with the United Russia party.
Putin accused of surrounding himself with same 'actors' at series of events
Valuev before a bout with Evander Holyfield (AFP/Getty Images)
Valuev took on David Haye in 2009 in a fight branded "David vs. Goliath" (PA)He made controversy in 2012 after responding to the the Russian state-sponsored doping scandal by saying Moscow should go to the Olympics to "tear everyone apart to spite these b******s who want to kill our sport".
In 2022, it was reported that he'd been drafted into the Russian Army, jut a few months before the start of the "special military operation".
He sat in the crowd as Putin claimed Russia is engaged in a "real war" with the West during his Victory Day speech in Moscow's Red Square today.
During the 10-minute speech, the tyrant repeated previous claims about the war in Ukraine - which has seen almost 200,000 Russians slaughtered.
Valuev became a politician for the United Russia party (nickvaluev / Instagram)He told the crowd: "Soldiers and seamen, and officers, generals, admirals, fighters and commanders, to all participants of the special military operation, I congratulate you on Victory Day [...]
"It is the celebration to honour our fathers and grandfathers who fought for their motherland and through their sacrifice they saved the world from Nazism."
Putin has repeatedly tried to sell the invasion of Ukraine as a glorified repeat of WWII, and continues to tell Russians that the "special military operation" is needed to unshackle the Donbas region from its Nazi overlords in Kyiv and the West.
"Today civilisation is once again at a decisive turning point," Mr Putin said.
"A real war has been unleashed against our Motherland."
He added: "Today we have a real war waged against us but we will be defending outself from terrorism, we will defend the citizens of Donbas."
Catholics across the world pray for Pope Benedict XVI as his body lies in state
Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February last year and has maintained an aggressive stance ever since, with the murder of innocent civlians and horrendous war crimes all recorded in a catalogue of abuses.
Putin continued to take swipes at the West, claiming that Kyiv's allies have forgotten about their history and that Moscow still deserves homage for something that happened 78 years ago.
He said: "They have forgotten who destroyed the evil. Who defended their motherlands, who liberated the people of Europe."
The despot was also seen carrying a briefcase with the codes to launch a nuclear attack.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
